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MEXICO    AS    I    SAW    IT. 


BY    THE    SAME    AUTHOR. 

THEOUGH   FINLAND  IN  CARTS.     Third  Edition. 
A  WINTER  JAUNT  TO  NORWAY.   Second  Edition. 
DANISH  VERSUS  ENGLISH  BUTTER- MAKING. 
THE    OBERAMMERGAU  PASSION   PLAY.     Out  of 

Print. 
WILTON,    Q.C.  ;     OR,     LIFE     IN    A    HIGHLAND 

SHOOTING  BOX.     Second  Edition. 
A  GIRL'S  RIDE  IN  ICELAND.    Third  Edition. 
GEORGE   BARLEY,    F.R.S.  ;    OR,   THE   LIFE   OF 

A  LONDON  PHYSICIAN. 


MEXICO  AS  I  SAW  IT 


MRS.    ALEC    TWEEDIE 

{nee    Harley) 

AUTHOR     OF 

"Through  Finland  in  Carts  " 
"George  Harley,  F.R.S." 

ETC. 


ILLUSTRATED  FROM  PHOTOGRAPHS 
BY    THE  AUTHOR. 


SECOND      EDITION 


NEW     YORK 

THE    MACMILLAN    COMPANY 

1902 

All  7-ights  reserved 


/2/S 


LIST    OF    ILLUSTRATIONS. 


Water-colour  sketch  of  Mexican  Valley  from  the  Castle  of  Chapul- 

tepec,  by  Author Frontispiece 

Piles  showing  all  that  remained  of  one  of  the  four  railway  bridges 

washed  away      ..........  i 

Steamer  on  dry  land,  Galveston      .......  i 

Cremating  the  dead  at  Galveston 

House  blown  over  by  the  storm      .......  8 

Branded  ! 1 6 

Six  men  to  one  calf!     .         .         .         .         .         .         .  •         •         i6 

The  loneliness  of  the  prairie  :    A  caporal         .....         34 

The  writer  on  a  corral    .........         34 

Horses  on  the  prairie     .........         38 

Mules  on  the  prairie       .........         38 

A  cowboy  luncheon  party       .         .         .         .         .         .         .         .         42 

"  Bunches"  of  horses  on  the  prairie        ......         42 

A  goat  herd  ...........         44 

Making  tortillas,  the  staple  food  of  the  country       ....         44 

Divided  skirt  for  riding  astride       .......         46 

A  private  car         ..........         58 

Barred  windows,  to  prevent  thieving       .         .         .         .         .         .         58 

The  writer  viewing  the  sham  fight  at  Monterey  in  honour  of  General 

Diaz  being  re-elected  President  for  the  sixth  time 
A  Mexican  beggar 

Native  adobe  house,  without  windows 
A  Mexican  market 
Durango        .... 


\ 


A  cock-fight  .... 
The  water-seller     . 

Lampote  (wald  sunflower),  used  for  fuel 
A  Mexican  well 
Grass  coat  made  from  cactus . 
Virgin  of  Guadalupe,   patron    saint    of   Mexico,  as    she   appeared 
miraculously  on  the  Indian's  Tilma,  1531.     Now  above  altar 


66 
66 
69 
69 
72 
76 
76 
86 
97 
97 


1367808 


X 


LIST   OF  ILLUSTRATIONS. 


FACING 
PAGE 


Interior  of  Guadalupe  church,  showing  the  altar  above  which  is 
framed  the  famous  Tilma,  depicting  the  Virgin  of  Guadalupe 
The  white  priest  below  is  in  marble ;  balustrades  of  solid  silver 
Pilgrims  in  front         ........ 

Guadalupe  pilgrims  returning  from  the  upper  church.  Walls 
crooked  from  earthquakes 

Modern  Indians  in  old  Indian  dress 

General  Porfirio  Diaz,  President  of  Mexico 

Doorway  in  Mexico  City 

Madame  Diaz        ..... 

Notice  proclaiming  General  Diaz  President  of  Mexico  for  the  sixth 
time,  September,  1900        .......  page 

Senor  Guillermo  de  Landa  y  Escandon 

Type  of  Mexican  (i)     . 

Type  of  Mexican  (2)     . 

Type  of  Mexican  (3)     . 

Matadors  in  front,  mounted  picadors  behind 

Entrance  of  procession  for  the  bull-fight 

Picador  and  blindfolded  horse 

A  brilliant  feat  by  the  banderillero . 

The  Alguacil,  or  chamberlain  of  the  bull-ring 

Death  of  the  bull  .... 

Ornamentations  from  Aztec  Wall  of  Serpents 

Stone  serpent's  head  from  Wall  of  Serpents 

Man  and  gourd,  with  which  he  extracts  pulque  (the  drink  of  the 
country)  from  the  maguey  plant 

Drainage  excavations,  Escalerillas  Street,  in  which  over  ten  tons  of 
Aztec  treasures  were  found 

Aztec  altar  exactly  as  found  in  the  drains 

Xehecatl,  God  of  the  Air 

Gold  ornaments  belonging  to  Xehecatl  . 

Indio  Triste  (sad  Indian),  so  named  from  sad  expression 

011a  in  which  burnt  bones  were  found    . 

Replica  of  Book  of  Famine.     Aztec  eagle 

Modern  Indian  in  dug-out  canoe,  Viga  Canal 

Aztec  stone  cylinders,  representing  cycle  of  fifty-two  years,  by  which 
time  was  measured     . 

Urns  for  cremated  bones 

Spoons  for  burning  incense    . 

Arrow  heads  .... 


109 


LIST   OF  ILLUSTRATIONS. 


XI 


TIaloc,  God  of  Rains     ........ 

Three  Mexican  policemen      ....... 

Crucifix  carved  out  of  a  living  tree         ..... 

Discovered  in  drains  of  Mexico  City,  January,  1901 

Jockey  Club  patio,  Mexico  City     ...... 

Jockey  Club  patio,  Mexico  City     ...... 

Church  domes       ......... 

Our  coach.  Lake  Chapula       ....... 

Guanajuata  .......... 

Water-colour  sketch  of  the  fruits  of  Mexico,  by  Author  . 
Mummies,  Guanajuata  ........ 

Rurales,  the  only  body  of  soldiers  of  the  kind  in  the  world     . 
Water-carrier,  Guanajuata      ....... 

Burros  (donkeys).     Cross  to  keep  away  the  devil  on  the  wall  . 
A  ride  on  an  engine       ........ 

Native  huts  on  Canon  to  Tampico.         ..... 

A  couple  of  hand-cars   ........ 

A  native  vine  bridge      ........ 

The  writer  in  her  divided  riding-skirt  for  mounting  astride 

The  writer  mounted  astride  outside  the  Xochicalco  ruins,  Southern 

Mexico      .......... 

Menu 

Theatre  invitation         ........ 

Cortes'  own  hacienda  near  Cuernavaca,  showing  the  original  pots  in 

which  he  made  sugar  in  1520     . 
Inscription  on  an  inside  window  at  Cortes'  hacienda,  said  to  have 

been  written  by  him  in  1520      . 
Colonel  Alarcdn,  Governor  of  the  State  of  Morelos,  with  two  of  hi 

guard         .......... 

Reception  at  Alpuyeca,  State  of  Morelos       .... 

Xochicalco  ruins  ......... 

Bower  of  orchids,  flowers,  and  palms  put   up  by  the  Aztec   Indians 

at  Xochicalco  ruins    ........ 

One  of  the  war-plumed  Aztecs  carved  on  the  Xochicalco  ruins 
Some  of  our  horses  and  soldiers  waiting  near  the  caves  of  Cacahui 

milpa         .......... 

Telegram  announcing  the  death  of  Queen  Victoria,  received  in  caves 

of  Cacahuimilpa         ........ 

San  Gabriel  Hacienda   ........ 

Organ-cactus  hedge        ........ 


FACING 
PAGE 

217 

222 

222 

224 

228 

243 
249 
249 

253 
257 
260 
260 
263 
275 
275 
280 
280 
291 

291 
298 
301 

304 
304 

309 

309 
312 

314 
314 

326 

333 
335 

344 


Xll 


LIST   OF  ILLUSTRATIONS. 


Aztec  Indian         .......... 

Cholula  pyramid  ......... 

Big  tree  of  Tule,  154  feet  round  the  trunk  at  six  feet  from  the 
ground;  a  native  says,  "  It  takes  two  looks  to  see  the  top." 

Chinese  god  found  in  a  tomb,  Huehnetlan,  State  of  Oaxaca.  The 
figure  is  bronze,  and  sits  2^  inches  high.  Said  to  be  4,000  years 
old 

Idols  found  near  Mitla.     Generally  five  in  a  tomb  .         .         .         . 

Ox  waggon,  showing  big  wheel  and  bad  streets        .... 

Native  Indian  church  near  Mitla,  where  the  entire  altar,  rails,  lamps, 
etc.,  are  of  silver       ......... 

Hall  of  Mosaics,  Mitla 

View  of  one  of  the  Temples  of  Mitla,  at  the  back  of  which  is  the 
Hall  of  the  Monoliths,  showing  where  Professor  Marshall  Saville 
found  cement  pavement  (now  cleared)  and  set  of  steps  leading 
to  the  temple.     Dark  hole  is  entrance  to  cruciform  chamber 

Exterior  of  Mitla  grave  ...... 

Interior  of  Mitla  grave  ...... 

Hall  of  Monoliths,  Mitla . 

Zapotec  girls,  in  the  Hall  of  Monoliths,  Mitla 

Cruciform  tomb  at  Guiaroo,  near  Mitla .... 

Ancient  fortress.  Upper  Guiaroo,  Mitla  .... 

Burning  effigies  of  Judas  in  Mexico  City  on  Easter  Sunday 

Alligators  on  banks  of  tropical  rivers  •  . 

Indian  dug-out  canoe,  150  years  old,  river  San  Juan,  Isthmus  of 
Tehuantepec      ........ 

A  Tehuantepec  girl  with  her  "  Huipil  "  (headgear) 

Tehuantepec  family       ....... 

IMarket  baskets  for  sale  ...... 

Bringing  the  ore  from  the  mine      ..... 

An  arrastra.     Native  mode  of  grinding  ore 


FACING 
PAGE 

344 

354 
354 


365 
365 
372 

372 

379 


Map  of  Mexico,  showing  author's  route 


r 

384 

388 

388 

393 

393 

396 

401 

401 

414 

lus  of 

414 

423 

431 

431 

446 

446 

Efid  of 

Book 

i«M«M«i^««MittMMt«HbMM*IWM 


i*«i«/iii#iKt»i}iiHli(iiUitiiiiriitti/|i  1$ 


Piles  showing  all  that  remained  of  one  of  the  four  railway  bridges  washed  away. 


To  face  page  i. 


Steamer  on  dry  land,  Galveston. 


MEXICO    AS     I    SAW    IT. 


CHAPTER    I. 

ONE    OF    THE    DISASTERS    OF    THE    WORLD. 

"Why  did  I  choose  Mexico  ?"  has  continually  been  asked. 
Because,  with  all  the  world  before  me,  that  land  seemed 
to  offer  a  more  historic  past  than  almost  any  other  country 
on  God's  earth,  and  was  there  not  a  spice  of  danger  and 
romance  yet  lurking  among  its  hills  and  valleys  ? 

There,  men  still  carried  arms  ;  no  one  dare  do  other- 
wise, for,  although  seldom  necessary,  the  mere  fact  of 
having  them  commands  respect.  Wild  journeys  on  horse- 
back through  the  mountains,  to  old  Aztec  ruins,  more- 
over, sounded  inviting. 

In  some  respects  Mexico,  in  this  year  of  grace  1901, 
is  highly  civilised,  but  in  others  it  remains  utterly  barbaric. 
Truly  a  land  of  paradox.  It  is  most  interesting,  always 
picturesque,  sometimes  blood-curdling,  and  often  sad. 

That  Mexico  had  a  past  I  knew,  that  Mexico  has  a 
future  I  have  only  lately  learned.  Its  future  does  not  lie 
in  wars  and  colonisation,  but  in  its  own  mineral  wealth 
and  agricultural  development,  of  which  I  shall  have  much 
to  say  later  on. 

Having  written  an  account  of  "  The  Days  of  my  Youth  " 
for  the  series  which  appears  in  "  M.A.P.,''  I  decided  on 
another  expedition   before  settling  down  to   "  middle  age  " 

I 


2  MEXICO  AS  I  SAW  IT. 

and  quietly  contemplating  the  approach  of  "senile  decay,' 
for  if  the  days  of  my  youth  were  indeed  irretrievably  past 
— as  the  request  of  "  M.A.  P.'s  "  Editor  so  plainly  hinted — 
this  would  probably  be  my  last  jaunt  before  betaking 
myself  to  that  bath-chair  a  reviewer  once  unkindly  sug- 
gested would  be  my  means  of  travel  in  the  future. 

That  reviewer  said  he  had  "watched  my  literary  career 
with  interest.  As  a  girl  she  'rode  through  Iceland,'  a  little 
later  she  '  snow-shoed  through  Norway,'  and  then,"  he 
added  :  "  She  took  to  driving  through  '  Finland  in  carts,' 
therefore  in  more  advanced  years  we  may  look  for  her 
travels  in  a  bath-chair  !  " 

He  has  been  mistaken  this  time,  however,  for  my  out- 
of-the-way  journeys  through  Mexico  were  generally  under- 
taken astride  a  horse  ! 

I  wound  up  the  four-hundred-day  clock  upon  the  library 
chimney-piece,  bidding  it  tick  on  until  my  return,  and  tell 
forth  the  hours  from  hot  summer  to  chilly  autumn,  from 
sombre  winter  to  joyous  spring.  It  kept  faith,  and  on  my 
return  nearly  eight  months  later  was  still  ticking  merrily. 
What  months  of  wandering'  those  were !  I  traversed  some 
25,000  miles  by  sea  and  land,  slept  in  sixty-two  different 
beds,  and  passed  thirty-four  nights  in  moving  trains. 

After  winding  the  clock,  taking  a  last  look  at  home, 
and  bidding  farewell  to  family  ties,  I  started  forth  on  my 
travels  for  the  first  time  alone. 

It  was  a  long  journey  ;  from  Liverpool  to  Quebec, 
through  Canada  to  Niagara,  back  to  New  York,  Chicago, 
Washington  and  Philadelphia,  peeping  into  lovely  homes 
and  happy  families  by  the  way  ;  but  still  on  I  roamed. 

New  Orleans  made  me  pause,  but  Mexico  was  my  goal. 
As  Galveston,  however,  is  the  last  port  before  entering  that 
fascinating  country,  this  book  begins  there — recent  events 
having  made  that  town  too  historical  to  be  passed  by  un- 
visited — and    ends    at    the  most  southern    harbour   on  the 


ONE    OF  THE   DISASTERS   OF    THE    WORLD.       3 

Isthmus  of  Tehuantepec,  which  is  destined  to  play  an  im- 
portant part  in  the  world's  shipping  commerce. 

On  Saturday,  September  8th,  1900,  one  of  the  greatest 
storms  this  world  has  ever  known  broke  over  the  Texan 
port  of  Galveston.  More  than  eight  thousand  human 
beings  met  their  death  in  a  few  hours,  perishing  cruelly 
by  wind  and  wave. 

On  my  way  to  Mexico  I  passed  through  Houston 
Junction,  some  fifty  odd  miles  from  Galveston,  and  as 
only  ten  weeks  had  elapsed  since  that  frightful  catastrophe, 
I  turned  aside  to  visit  the  ruins  of  a  busy  city. 

"Are  you  not  afraid  of  fever  .^ "  several  friends  asked 
nervously  when  they  heard  of  my  intention. 

"  No,  if  we  were  afraid  of  everything  in  life  we  should 
never  accomplish  anything,"  I  answered,  and  went. 

What  a  sight !     What  desolation  !  !     What  misery  ! ! ! 

Each  wave  as  it  lapped  that  Galveston  shore  seemed 
to  be  sobbing  a  requiem  mass  for  the  dead. 

Some  of  the  survivors  told  me  the  morning  of  that 
Saturday  dawned  wet  and  windy — as  the  sun  rose  the 
storm  increased  ;  heavy  rain  fell,  and  surging  clouds  chased 
one  another  overhead.  Still  it  was  only  a  boisterous 
morning  ;  so  far  nothing  more.  Storms  and  rough  waves 
are  not  uncommon  ;  consequently  no  great  trouble  was 
anticipated. 

Galveston,  be  it  understood,  though  an  island  some 
twenty-five  miles  in  length,  and  varying  from  two  to  five 
miles  in  breadth,  is  really  nothing  more  than  a  sand-bar, 
which  only  stands  about  five  feet  above  the  ordinary  sea- 
level.  To  an  outsider  it  seems  a  perfectly  insane  idea  ever 
to  have  built  a  town  on  such  a  site,  but  this  sand-bar  affords 
the  only  harbour  between  New  Orleans  and  Tampico  in 
Mexico,  a  distance  of  nearly  two  thousand  miles  ! 

The  town  is  all  on  the  surface ;  there  are  no  cellars 
in    Galveston,   and  water  is  generally   reached  at  a  depth 

I* 


4  MEXICO   AS    I  SAW  IT. 

of  four  feet.  The  island  was  connected  with  the 
mainland  by  four  bridges,  but  on  that  awful  night  those 
bridges  were  swept  away  ;  every  telegraph  pole  was 
blown  down,  all  artificial  light  extinguished,  till  at  last, 
shrouded  in  darkness  and  swept  by  storm,  the  town — • 
completely  cut  off  from  communication  with  the  outside 
world — had  to  face  destruction  alone. 

To  the  South,  Galveston  is  washed  by  the  mighty 
waters  of  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  which  rising  as  one  huge 
wave,  in  a  single  night  destroyed  thousands  of  human 
dwellinofs. 

Along  the  shore  of  the  bay  were  the  poorer  homes  ; 
there,  for  a  distance  of  four  miles  and  a  depth  of  one 
(or  seven  streets),  the  entire  area  was  swept  clean. 

About  ten  o'clock  on  that  fatal  morning  the  storm 
became  terrible,  the  waters  of  the  Gulf  rose,  and  the 
inhabitants  commenced  to  feel  alarmed.  Galveston  had 
once  before  been  partially  submerged.  This  evidently  was 
going  to  prove  no  ordinary  storm,  and  anxiety  filled  every 
heart.  The  gale  increased  in  intensity,  the  rain  still 
fell,  and  hour  by  hour  matters  became  more  serious. 
Ocean  steamers  dragged  at  their  anchors,  smaller  vessels 
were  torn  from  their  moorings,  and  blown  on  to  the 
land !  Steadily  but  furiously  the  waters  ascended  ;  the 
wind  blew  a  hurricane.  People  found  it  difficult  to 
stand  upright.  Chimneys,  slates,  tiles,  and  loose  timber 
whirled  about  like  paper,  and  still  the  storm  grew  more 
violent.  Billows  rushed  through  the  streets  ;  mighty 
waves  swept  all  before  them. 

By  three  o'clock  the  waters  of  the  Gulf  of  Mexico 
had  spread  over  the  city,  and  joined  company  with 
Galveston  Bay,  on  the  north  side  of  the  island. 

Think  of  it !  The  whole  town  submerged.  In  some 
places  the  water  rose  thirty-three  feet,  and  actually  twenty 
feet  within  the  city  limits.      It  was  like  the  Deluge  ! 


ONE    OF   THE   DISASTERS    OF   THE    WORLD.       5 

Heart-rending  were  the  tales  I  heard  concerning  that 
awful  time  !  I  saw  a  poor  old  woman  tending  four  little 
children,  the  youngest  being  a  baby  only  a  few  months 
old.  She  had  lived  near  the  beach  with  her  two  sons, 
one  of  whom  was  married.  When  the  waters  began  to 
rise  the  latter  took  her  and  his  four  children  to  a  house 
in  the  business  part  of  the  town — the  only  part  which 
escaped  destruction — and  returned  to  fetch  his  wife  and 
brother.  Neither  he  nor  that  ivife  nor  brotJier  ivas 
ever  seen  again  ! 

Another  woman  whom  I  met  in  what  had  been  a 
street  kept  wailing,  "Why,  why  was  I  saved?"  That 
story  was  terrible.  She  and  her  husband,  with  two 
children  on  his  shoulders,  had  breasted  the  waves  till 
they  rose  as  high  as  his  arm-pits  ;  nothing  more  is 
known  of  their  struggle,  except  that  the  poor  young 
wife  was  seen  floating  past  a  house  when  someone 
caught  her  by  her  hair  and  pulled  her  in  through  an 
open  window.  Her  body  was  saved  ;  but  her  reason 
lost.  What  became  of  the  husband  and  children  can 
only  be  imagined. 

One  poor  youth,  whose  family  was  swept  away,  had  both 
legs  broken  by  falling  timber  ;  another  bent  old  man 
searched  for  his  wife  during  ten  long  weeks,  but  never 
found  her.  And  so  one  might  go  on  and  on,  relating  the 
horrors  wrought  by  that  dreadful  gale  ! 

It  is  now  said  if  people  had  only  realised  about 
mid-day  that  the  waters  would  not  subside  as  they  did 
in  1875  and  1890,  and  at  once  left  their  homes  and 
gone'  to  the  highe-f  business  streets,  much  less  loss  of 
life  would  have  resulted  ;  as  it  was,  when  they  tried  to 
escape  in  the  afternoon  and  evening,  by  endeavouring 
to  wade  through  four,  five,  six  and  seven  feet  ot  water, 
they  perished  in  the  attempt.  Many  were  drowned  ;  but 
even    more  were    stunned   and   killed   by  falling  buildings, 


6  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

for  a  deadly  shower  of  timber   and  tiles  accompanied   the 

gale. 

The  wind  had  attained  a  velocity  of  eighty-four  miles 
an  hour  when  the  anemometer  broke  and  the  register 
ceased  ;  but  a  high  official  stated  the  later  speed  of  the 
hurricane  was  computed  at  a  hundred  and  twenty  miles 
an  hour  !     Who  or  what  could  withstand  such  a  pace  ? 

As  daylight  began  to  fade  on  that  memorable  Satur- 
day, it  was  found  that  all  the  electric  plant  had  been 
destroyed,  that  no  lamp  or  candle  would  burn  a  single 
instant,  and  hopeless  darkness  was  closing  in  upon  the 
already  ruined  city.  Weeks  later  I  saw  the  remains  of 
what  had  been  the  motor  house :  the  larofe  stone  build- 
Ing  was  an  utter  wreck,  no  complete  wall  remained  ;  the 
dynamos  were  bent  and  twisted,  the  huge  wheels  used  for 
working  the  machinery  doubled  up  and  lying  a  useless  heap 
in  the  street ! 

All  agree  that  the  inhabitants  of  that  ill-fated  town  lost 
heart  when  this  awful  darkness  fell  upon  them,  and  seem  to 
have  anticipated  the  Judgment  Day  was  at  hand.  Every 
hour  made  things  more  hopeless  ;  the  storm  increased 
each  minute,  the  black  pall  overhead  made  every  heart 
quail,  every  nerve  relax.      One  man  said  to  me  : — 

"  I  kissed  my  wife  and  children,  and  we  all  prayed 
together  that  we  might  meet  in  Heaven."  Then  he 
added,  "  No  death,  no  parting,  no  torture  on  the  rack, 
could  ever  be  more  horrible  to  me  than  the  memory  of 
what  we  passed  through  that  night." 

Only  when  one  saw  the  devastation  that  resulted  did  it 
become  possible  even  vaguely  to  imagine  the  agonies  which 
must  have  been  endured  by  those  poor  people.  Every 
hour  the  heavens  seemed  to  grow  more  densely  black. 
Darkness  and  despair  such  as  those  men  and  women  had 
never  before  even  conceived,  settled  down  upon  them  ; 
they  heard  the  wind   roar,  and  felt  the  waves  still  rising. 


ONE    OF   THE   DISASTERS    OF   THE    WORLD.       7 

but  could  see  nothing.  Their  houses  swayed  above  and 
around  them,  a  door  or  a  window  was  blown  in,  bit  by- 
bit  whole  buildings  fell.  Many,  numbed  with  cold  and 
exhausted  by  hunger,  relaxed  their  hold  to  whatever  they 
might  be  clinging,  and  were  drowned. 

Yet  the  chief  Rabbi  told  me  he  did  not  see  a  single 
tear  ;  emotion  was  paralyzed  by  fear. 

"  No  one  wept  during  those  hours  of  storm,"  he  added, 
"  but  for  days  afterwards  one  continually  beheld  the 
meetings  of  people  who,  after  having  long  searched  in 
vain  for  their  loved  ones,  eventually  found  them  alive. 
Then,  and  not  till  then,  tears  of  joy  and  relief  over- 
powered them." 

Tears  as  often  betoken  joy  as  sorrow  ! 

It  would  be  quite  impossible  to  describe  the  scenes  of 
desolation  I  beheld  in  Galveston  even  seventy-two  days 
after  the  storm.  With  the  exception  of  the  business 
quarter  of  the  town — which  had  been  repaired  by  import- 
ing some  thousand  men  for  the  job — miles  and  miles  of 
streets  still  lay  ruined  and  desolated.  Pavements  were 
torn  up,  great  stone  flags  lay  piled  up  against  some 
obstacle  which  had  arrested  them  in  their  wild  course, 
trees — once  forming  shady  avenues — lay  right  across  the 
side  paths,  telegraph  poles  were  bent  over,  roofs  which 
had  been  blown  away  entire  were  lying  in  gardens,  amid 
huddled  masses  of  bricks,  wires  rusted  and  tano;led. 

Among  the  debris  were  saucepans,  baths,  perambulators, 
and  endless  garments.  Bits  of  clothing  were  torn  from 
the  people  by  the  storm  ;  many  of  the  wretched  creatures 
were  stripped  almost  naked  on  that  cold  cruel  night. 
Children  suffered  fearfully.  Horrors  too  terrible  to  pen 
happened  on  every  side. 

As  one  approached  the  beach,  the  aspect  of  affairs 
became  more  and  more  appalling.  Here  one  saw  a 
demolished   tram-car,   off  its    rails,   which    were   all  broken 


8  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

and  bent  for  a  mile  and  more  ;  there,  amongst  the  tumbled 
spars  and  splinters  that  had  once  been  a  wooden  house, 
stood  a  cottage  piano.  Poor  piano  !  Think  of  the  boys 
and  girls  who  had  spent  their  happy  evenings  with  that 
now  shattered  instrument,  soaked  with  rain,  half  its  notes 
dumb  for  ever,  its  legs  broken,  a  wreck  which  had  been 
left  out  in  all  weathers  during  ten  long  weeks.  There 
was  something  very  pathetic  about  that  piano,  which  had 
probably  required  all  the  savings  of  the  family  to  purchase. 
There  it  was,  shorn  of  its  glory,  its  harmony  gone,  only 
able  to  emit  a  weird  croak  as  we  touched  a  note.  Probably 
the  fingers  which  once  awoke  its  music  were  cremated  in 
the  heap  of  ashes  close  by. 

In  the  first  panic,  when  drowned  or  stunned  corpses 
were  washed  away  into  the  ocean,  it  was  arranged  all  re- 
maining bodies  should  be  placed  in  barges  and,  after 
being  weighted,  buried  in  the  depths  of  the  sea.  Terrible 
was  the  result,  however,  for  a  few  days  later  the  sea  gave 
up  its  dead ! 

Then  some  scientifically  wise  person  suggested  crema- 
tion, and  subsequently,  wherever  a  dozen  or  more  corpses 
were  discovered,  they  were  collected  together,  the  shattered 
walls  of  houses,  doors,  floorings  or  what  not,  piled  upon 
them,  and  the  heaps  ignited.  This  saved  Galveston  ; 
otherwise  it  is  certain  some  terrible  epidemic  must  have 
broken  out,  some  plague  finished  the  work  of  destruction 
begun  by  wind  and  water. 

Passing  on  down  the  street,  I  saw  rows  of  small  houses 
standing  on  their  heads  ;  they  had  been  turned  literally 
upside-down,  and  so  they  remained.  On  a  side  path  lay 
the  ruin  of  what  had  once  been  a  sewing-machine.  There 
it  stood,  rusty  and  useless,  yet  three  months  earlier  some 
woman  probably  earned  her  livelihood  by  working  those 
treadles.      Where  was  that  woman  now  ? 

Mournful,  most   mournful  were  the  endless  tragedies  that 


Cremating  the  dead  at  Galveston. 


House  l)lown  over  by  the  storm. 


[  To  face  page  8. 


ONE   OF  THE   DISASTERS   OF  THE    WORLD.       9 

had  been  enacted — girls  looking  for  their  lovers  in  the  piles 
of  dead,  wives  seeking  their  husbands.  When  I  was  there 
men  were  still  unearthing  corpses  from  under  the  ruins, 
the  ruins  of  a  city  which  once  contained  thirty-five  thousand 
human  beings,  nearly  a  quarter  of  whom  were  killed  in  a 
few  short  hours. 

Man  could  do  nothing  ;  he  was  utterly  powerless,  he 
had  not  even  time  to  run  away.  It  was  all  too  horrible, 
too  terrible.  As  I  wrote  in  the  hotel  which  withstood  the 
storm  (though  five  feet  of  water  had  crossed  the  pavement 
and  flooded  its  hall)  it  was  November  19th,  1900,  barely 
five  weeks  from  Christmas,  yet  the  heat  was  extraordinary, 
the  thermometer  standing  at  90  degrees  F.  in  the  shade. 
The  tropical  rain  of  the  previous  night  had  barely  run 
away  even  in  that  sandy  soil,  mosquitoes  hovered  around  in 
millions,  attracted  by  the  terrible  things  which  still  lay  con- 
cealed in  every  corner  of  Galveston,  till  they  formed  a 
veritable  plague.  Mosquito  nets  and  curtains  would  not 
keep  them  out  ;  the  air  literally  teemed  with  myriads  of 
flies. 

A  plague  of  locusts  in  Morocco  once  amazed  me  ;  but 
they  were  clean — this  plague  of  flies  frightened  me,  for  they 
were  multiplying  on  putrefaction.  Thirty-seven  bites  on 
my  face,  I  honestly  own,  alarmed  me.  Would  they  bring 
blood-poisoning  in  their  wake,  I  wondered  ;  was  I  mad 
after  all  to  visit  Galveston,  when  that  very  day  over  one 
hundred  corpses  had  been  unearthed  ?  It  is  useless  an- 
ticipating evil,  however,  so  back  I  started  to  the  beach. 

A  strange  sight  presented  itself  We  passed  stone 
houses  three  floors  high,  roofless,  or  perhaps  with  only 
one  story  remaining,  and  felt  for  the  rich  folk  as  we 
beheld  one  wrecked  dwelling  after  another ;  but  it 
was  beside  the  shore  that  the  most  pathetic  scenes  pre- 
sented themselves.  Hundreds  and  hundreds  of  poorer 
homes    had    entirely    gone  ;     nothing    whatever    remained 


lo  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

standing,  the  wreckage  had  been  blown  into  a  sort  of  sea 
wall,  and  the  belongings  of  the  poor  had  helped  to  preserve 
the  residences  of  the  rich.  Here  was  the  frame-work  of 
what  once  had  been  a  bedstead,  now  only  a  twisted  mass  of 
old  iron,  there  an  oven  upside  down,  the  leg  of  a  chair,  a  bit 
of  crockery,  the  pendulum  of  a  clock,  a  pair  of  trousers, 
half  a  hat,  a  broken  frying  pan,  a  child's  tin  soldier  covered 
with  rust.  Here  lay  the  entire  worldly  goods  of  thousands 
of  people,  all  collected  into  one  huge  mound,  from  beneath 
which,  for  days  and  nights,  press  gangs  had  been  excavating 
dead  bodies.  In  all,  six  thousand  five  hundred  bodies  were 
officially  counted  and  disposed  of,  and  it  is  estimated  that 
fifteen  hundred  more  were  washed  out  to  sea  in  the  first 
instance,  making  a  total  of  over  eight  thousand  persons 
who  met  their  death  in  the  ruins  of  Galveston. 

As  each  corpse  was  found,  all  clothes  and  valuables  were 
gathered  together,  put  in  a  little  bundle,  numbered,  and 
officially  kept  with  a  label  bearing  the  date  of  finding  the 
body  and  an  account  of  its  disposal  attached.  This  was  a 
splendid  scheme  for  identification  ;  but  it  led  to  many 
sad  results.  People  who  had  searched  for  days  and 
weeks  among  the  debris  for  their  beloved  ones,  went  to 
the  office  to  examine  these  little  bundles,  and  many  a 
heart-breaking  scene  ensued  as  some  lone  survivor  found 
the  records  of  a  dear  one's  death  in  that  pathetic  little 
collection.  Thousands  of  articles  have  never  been  iden- 
tified— indeed,  only  about  half  of  those  eight  thousand  dead 
was  it  possible  to  trace  by  name  at  all.  Whole  families 
were  swept  away,  and  no  one  survived  able  to  tell  who 
they  had  been. 

After  the  storm  sul)sided  on  Sunday  afternoon,  every 
able-bodied  man  was  pressed  into  the  service  of  burying 
the  dead  and  clearinq-  the  town.  Their  shrift  would  have 
been  short  had  they  refused.  Some  of  the  niggers,  who 
rifled  the  dead,  were  shot  in  the  act,  and  that  put  a  stop  to 


ONE    OF   THE   DISASTERS    OF   THE    WORLD,     ii 

theft.  Conscription  was  universal.  Every  man  obeyed  the 
command,  and  performed  the  work  allotted  to  him. 

For  the  survivors  the  arrangements  were  as  follows  : — 

In  rows  upon  the  cleared  part  of  the  beach  were  ranged 
tents  provided  to  protect  the  homeless.  They  were  quite 
nice  tents,  large  and  airy,  with  double  roofs  ;  but  oh  !  so 
sparsely  furnished,  for  their  wretched  inhabitants  had  lost 
all  they  possessed.  One  encampment  was  for  the  utterly 
destitute,  that  is  to  say,  families  without  a  bread-winner  ; 
there  were  six  hundred  and  forty  such  families  when  I  was 
there,  and  these  destitute  people  were  given  three  meals  a 
day  from  a  public  kitchen,  it  was  wonderful  to  see  the 
organisation.  Further  down  the  beach  were  tents  lent  as 
houses  to  people  able  to  provide  for  themselves.  Water 
was  laid  on  to  the  so-called  "street"  between  the  lines  of 
tents  at  Beach  Camp,  and  a  sergeant  from  Texas  seemed 
to  keep  excellent  order,  and  see  that  nothing  was  thrown 
away  likely  to  cause  disease.  Exemption  from  illness 
under  such  dreadful  circumstances  was  the  most  remark- 
able result  of  the  organisation. 

Within  forty-eight  hours  of  the  storm  the  stench  in  the 
town  became  almost  unbearable,  but  so  ably  were  matters 
coped  with  that  no  pestilence  ensued,  and,  all  thrngs  con- 
sidered, little  sickness.  Judging  by  the  millions  of  flies  and 
mosquitoes  that  crawled  everywhere,  it  seems  a  miracle  that 
the  survivors  of  the  storm  did  not  perish  from  some  plague. 
Ozone,  however,  is  a  great  purifier.  Besides,  all  was  under 
military  rule  and  medical  supervision.  Carbolic  and  dis- 
infectants ran  down  the  gutters  till  nothing  unpleasant 
remained  except  the  scourge  of  flies. 

A  stranger  could  only  marvel  at  the  promptitude  and 
method  with  which  everything  had  been  carried  out,  or 
rather  was  being  carried  out,  for  on  the  second  day  after  my 
arrival  at  Galveston,  the  following  statement  appeared  in 
the  chief  papers  : — 


12  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

MORE  STORM  VICTIMS  FOUND. 

A  number  of  the  unburied  dead  disposed  of  by  cremation. 

A  SEARCH  FOR  MISSING  RELATIVES. 

A  horrifying  Spectacle  Down  the  Island.      Swamp  Filled  with  one  hundred  Dead. 

Attacked  by  Hogs. 

So  that  one  hundred  dead  bodies  were  actually  found 
while  I  was  in  Galveston  ;  but  the  sight  was  too  horrible, 
and  I  kept  away.  Seventy  more  were  discovered  during  the 
following  week,  but  in  such  a  state  of  decomposition  that 
they  were  quite  unrecognisable,  and  had  to  be  cremated  at 
once.  This  cremation  was,  undoubtedly,  the  salvation  of 
the  survivors. 

For  weeks  the  outside  world  had  been  asking,  "Is  it 
wise  to  keep  Galveston  as  a  port  after  the  storms  of  1875, 
1890  and  1900?"  Certainly  when  walking  round  the 
low  sand-bank  of  an  island,  a  stranger  would  say  decidedly 
"  No  !  "  Local  opinion  declares,  however,  that  Galveston 
is  of  vital  importance,  not  only  to  Texas,  but  to  America. 
This  is  the  only  possible  port  between  New  Orleans  and 
Tampico,  and  has  an  excellent  deep-sea  harbour.  Hence 
its  great  business,  its  vast  import  and  export  trade  ;  but 
oh  !  one  has  only  to  look  at  it  under  its  present  conditions 
to  feel  that  no  less  desirable  position  for  a  home  could  be 
found  upon  earth  ! 

The  estimated  loss  to  the  survivors  in  the  poor  districts 
alone  was  4,000,000  dollars. 

Some  people  have  doubted  the  necessity  of  restoring 
Galveston  as  a  port,  but  they  will  hardly  continue  to  doubt 
its  importance  when  they  learn  that  barely  ten  weeks  after 
the  disaster  29,000  bales  of  cotton  were  received  in  one 
day,  which  shows  possibilities  for  the  future  ! 

People  were  given  grants  to  rebuild  their  homes.  It 
was  not  much — 250  dollars,  or  ^50,  being  the  largest 
sum  allowed  to  any  one  individual — still  in  the  cases  of  the 
really  poor  and  destitute  that  was  everything,  and  enabled 


ONE    OF  THE   DISASTERS    OF   THE    WORLD.     13 

many  to  start  life  afresh.  A  little  house  of  two  rooms  and 
a  kitchen  was  not  to  be  despised.  Help  was  also  given  in 
repairing  or  removing  a  house.  Many  homes  were  put  on 
rollers  and  moved  back  bodily  a  quarter  of  a  mile !  Even 
brick  buildings,  strange  as  it  may  seem,  were  rolled  con- 
siderable distances  to  their  former  sites. 

One  of  the  things  which  struck  me  as  particularly  curious 
was  the  want  of  method  of  the  storm.  The  hurricane  had 
blown  in  a  circle,  the  wind  whirling  round  and  round,  and 
the  result  was  extraordinary.  For  instance,  houses  for- 
merly in  a  line  in  the  street  had  each  been  twisted  in  such 
a  way  that  they  sat  in  the  next  garden  facing  one  another 
at  an  angle,  or  two  fronts  almost  touching.  It  seems  im- 
possible ;  but  it  is  true.  Many  things  at  Galveston 
seemed  impossible,  but  they  were  able  to  prove  themselves 
facts.  Strangely  enough,  a  well-built  wooden  house 
seemed  to  withstand  the  storm  better  than  a  brick  one.  It 
bent,  sometimes  it  was  blown  bodily  half  a  mile  away,  but 
the  better  wooden  houses  appeared  to  stick  more  together. 
Among  brick  buildings,  the  churches  suffered  by  far  the 
greatest  damage.  Hardly  a  single  church  remained  stand- 
ingf,  althouofh  in  one  street  two  darkies'  churches  had 
resisted  the  force  of  the  storm,  while  four  others  were 
totally  destroyed.  The  steeple  of  a  Baptist  chapel  re- 
mained, while,  singular  to  say,  the  church  itself  was  a  ruin. 

This  reminds  me  of  a  curious  coincidence.  Above  the 
altar  of  St.  Mary's  Cathedral  was  a  large  crucifix  ;  the 
storm  tore  down  the  wall  behind  it  ;  but  in  some  wonderful 
manner  the  enormous  cross,  when  falling  outwards,  was 
caught  on  a  timber,  and  hung  there  at  an  angle  of  45 
degrees,  a  weird  illustration  of  the  lowering  of  the  cross  ! 

It  would  be  impossible  to  close  this  chapter  without  men- 
tioning that  great  and  good  woman,  Mary  Barton,  the 
Florence  Nightingale  of  America,  who  hurried  from  Wash- 
ington two  or  three  days  after   the  storm  with  an  army  of 


14  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

doctors,  nurses,  and  a  corps  for  distributing  food  and 
clothing.  America  had  great  faith  in  her  ;  her  appeals 
were  immediately  responded  to,  and  for  eight  weeks  she 
organised  the  succour  of  the  people. 

Was  it  not  Sainte  Beuve  who  considered  Experience  a 
great  book,  the  events  of  life  its  chapters  ?  As  one  travels 
in  distant  lands  and  studies  men  and  things,  one  realises 
more  and  more  what  a  vast  book  Experience  really  is. 

Poor  Galveston !  Nearly  three  thousand  residences, 
according  to  official  count,  were  totally  destroyed  ;  ninety- 
eight  and  a  half  per  cent,  of  the  remaining  homes  badly 
damaged,  while  not  one  single  building  escaped  harm. 

For  eighteen  hours  that  storm  raged  with  mad  fury, 
and  then  subsided  almost  as  quickly  as  it  arose.  But 
the  Great  Gulf  waves  had  encroached  one  thousand 
feet  upon  the  land  to  stay,  and  they  now  wash  hourly 
over  what  was  formerly  the  site  of  the  Beach  Hotel,  and 
the  dwellings  of  many  people.  The  shore  front  is 
changed  ;  but  is  it  for  ever  ? 

■^  ^  "^  ^  "^  ^  ^ 

A  few  days  later  I  was  at  San  Antonio,  Texas,  and 
when  driving  out  to  the  delightful  old  Catholic  Mission- 
Houses,  my  conversation  with  the  darkie  coachman  turned 
on  Galveston. 

"  I  was  there  durino-  the  storm,"  he  said,  in  that  soft 
musical  voice  peculiar  to  these  people,  who  seem  to  talk 
the  best  English  in  America.  "  I  had  a  week's  holiday, 
and  went  there  to  see  some  friends,  and  the  very  day 
before  I  ought  to  have  left  that  storm  came.     Oh  my  !  " 

"  It  must  have  been  fearful!"    I  exclaimed. 

"  There  is  no  word  for  it.  I  just  thought  it  was  the 
end  of  the  world — we  all  did.  Oh  my,  it  was  bad  ! 
The  only  bit  of  luck  I  had  was  to  get  my  leg  smashed 
by  some  falling  timber." 

"  Why  luck  ?  "    I  asked  in  surprise. 


ONE    OF   THE   DISASTERS    OF   THE    WORLD.     15 

"  Well,  you  see,  no  man  that  could  work  was  allowed 
out  of  the  town,  he  had  to  help  bury  and  tidy  up,  and 
oh  my,  there  were  some  sights  !  But  as  I  couldn't 
walk  they  let  me  go,  and  I  felt  as  if  I  was  getting 
out  of  Hell,  I  did  !  " 

And  remembering  what  I  myself  had  seen  in  Galveston, 
I  felt  how  truly  the  darkie  was  describing  the  scene  in 
his  own  simple  language. 


i6 


CHAPTER    11. 


LIFE    ON    A    MEXICAN    RANCHE. 


For  hours  and  hours  the  train  had  been  pounding  along 
between  huge  Texan  ranches — low-lying  country  covered 
with  a  sort  of  scrub  intermingled  with  cactus  and  small 
trees,  among  which  cattle  or  horses  were  grazing. 

The  journey  seemed  horribly  uninteresting  and  dusty 
after  leaving  that  delightful  old  town,  San  Antonio, 
with  its  history  of  war  and  plunder,  and  I  was  sitting 
lazily  looking  over  some  MSS.  when  an  official  in 
uniform  appeared  before  me. 

"  Are  you  Mrs.  Alec  Tweedie  ?  "  he  asked. 

"  I  am,"  I  answered  with  an  outward  show  of  courage, 
though  inwardly  wondering  "  Who  can  he  be  ?  A 
detective  ?  What  does  this  portend  ?  What  crime  am 
I  supposed  to  have  committed  ?  Will  he  stop  my 
journey  ? "  All  of  which  questions  and  a  dozen  more 
flashed  through  my  brain  during  the  moment  that  passed 
ere  he  said  : 

"  I  have  come  to  help  you  at  the  frontier  with  your 
luggage."  >     ^ 

I  sighed  with  relief,  thanked  him,  and  after  his  departure 
tried  to  go  on  with  my  work. 

A  few  minutes  only  elapsed  however,  we  had  just 
passed  a  junction,  ere  another  man  stood  before  me, 
who  likewise  enquired  : 


Branded  ! 


i 


V 


k.v- 


Six  men  to  one  calf  ! 


S^To  face  page  i6. 


LIFE    ON  A    MEXICAN  RAN  CHE.  17 

"  Are  you  Mrs.  Alec  Tweedie  ?  " 

I  trembled  ao-ain.  What  did  it  mean  ?  Was  mv 
luggage  overweight,  or  about  to  be  confiscated,  or  what  ? 
Nevertheless  I  managed  to  reply  calmly  once  more. 

"  I  am." 

"  I  come  from  the  International  Railway  to  bid  you 
welcome  to  Mexico,"  was  the  astonishing  explanation. 

What  a  relief!  He  was  a  gentleman  this  time,  and  I 
asked  him  to  sit  down,  and  we  chatted,  but  not  for 
lonof,  since  in  a  few  minutes — 

"  Are  you  Mrs.  Alec  Tweedie  ?"  demanded  a  third  man, 
handing  me  a  telegram.  It  was  really  too  funny,  and  this 
time  I  laughed  outright,  as  did  Mr.  Carrington,  to  whom  I 
had  just  related  my  previous  experiences. 

"  I  come  from  Mr.  Cloete's  ranche,"  explained  the  third 
envoy,  "  to  look  after  you,  and  welcome  you  in  his  name," 
and  Mr.  Le  Mare  thereupon  joined  our  party. 

Only  a  short  time  went  by,  and  we  were  chatting 
about  my  recent  adventures,  when  a  foitrth  man 
presented  himself 

"  Are  you  Mrs.  Alec  Tweedie  ?  "  he  queried. 

Convulsed  with  laughter,  I  could  only  nod  assent. 

"  Mr.  Barrett,  of  Sonora,  asked  me  to  meet  you  at 
the  frontier,  and  see  you  safely  to  Sabinas,"  said  Mr. 
Cowell,  a  mining  engineer,  looking  surprised,  as  well 
he  might,   at  my  unexpected  escorts. 

It  really  was  extraordinary.  Four  men  had  arrived 
from  different  directions,  each  on  the  same  errand  and 
each  unknown  to  the  other. 

After  all  there  are  advantages  in  travelling  alone. 
Every  person  offers  to  look  after  one,  and  certainly 
on  those  thousands  of  miles  of  journey  I  was  scarcely  ever 
allowed  to  feel  solitary,  and  rarely  sat  down  to  a  meal  by 
myself  during  the  many  happy  months  I  was  on  American 
soil. 


1 8  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

How  kind  people  are  to  strangers  !  How  hospitable 
and  thouohtful  for  their  comfort. 

Thus  I  crossed  the  Rio  Grande  at  Eagle  Pass,  sur- 
rounded by  friends,  to  be  met  on  the  frontier  at  Porfirio 
Diaz  by  charming  ladies,  Mrs.  King,  Mrs.  Hamilton  and 
Miss  Carrington,  all  bringing  lovely  flowers,  and  a  hearty 
welcome  to  Mexico.  Under  such  delightful  auspices  I 
first  trod  on  the  soil  of  the  Toltecs  and  Aztecs. 
Nearly  all  those  people  were  strangers  to  me  ;  yet  when 
I  left  Mexico  six  months  later,  I  felt  I  might  number  many 
of  them  among  my  friends. 

It  was  quite  dark,  lo  p.m.,  when  we  arrived  at  Sabinas, 
I  and  mounted  into  the  queer  Mexican  carriage,  drawn  by  a 
couple  of  steady-going  mules,  and  were  driven  by  a 
Spaniard  in  an  enormous  hat,  to  the  ranche,  or  hacienda 
(h  omitted  in  pronunciation)  as  it  is  called.  It  was  not  a 
long  drive,  or  particularly  delightful,  though  the  hum  of 
thousands  of  crickets  added  to  its  strangeness.  The  cry  of 
those  insects  haunted  me  for  months  ;  but  that  night,  in 
the  dark  and  the  oppressive  stillness,  it  seemed  absolutely 
weird. 

"  We  four  men  who  live  at  the  ranche,"  said  my  host,  as 
we  drove  through  the  night,  "  have  all  cleared  out  of  the 
big  house,  so  that  you  can  have  it  to  yourself.  It  is  a 
two-storey  building,  with  wide_halconies,  and  I  hope  you 
will  be  comfortable." 

"Who  sleeps  there  .'^  "  I  ventured  to  ask,  the  heart  of 
even  an  "  elderly  scribe,"  failing  somewhat  at  the  prospect 
of  spending  a  night  alone  in  a  big  two-storey  house  in  the 
wilds  of  Mexico — a  land  I  had  only  entered  that  evening, 
where  even  my  four  bachelor  hosts  were  strangers — if  the 
Irishism  may  be  excused — and  where  I  knew  every  male  to 
be  fully  armed  ! 

"  No  one,"  was  the  reply,  "the  servants  have  their  own 
huts,  and  our  house  is  across  the  garden." 


LIFE    ON  A    MEXICAN  RANG  HE.  19 

This  was  too  much  !  I  simply  could  not.  It  was  close 
on  midnight,  there  was  not  even  a  moon,  and  everything 
looked  so  black  and  strange  that  visions  of  dusky  Mexican 
Indians  with  stiletto  knives,  pistols,  long  swords  and  um- 
brella-like hats — all  of  which  I  had  noticed  on  the  station 
platform — rose  before  me.  Almost  ashamed  to  own  my 
fear — I  was  afraid,  for  the  croaking  of  those  millions  of 
crickets  well-nigh  drowned  the  roar  of  the  river  below 
the  house,  and  added  uncanniness  to  night — I  timidly 
remarked  I  should  prefer  someone  sleeping  within  call.  It 
was  suggested  that  a  man  and  his  wife  should  be  fetched, 
from  a  cottage  a  short  distance  away,  and  remain  on  the 
premises  during  the  night. 

After  something  to  eat  my  kind  hosts,  each  carrying  a 
lantern,  escorted  me  by  the  outside  staircase  to  my  room. 
Stairways  are  generally  outside  I  found,  and  the  rooms 
open  directly  on  the  verandahs.  The  balconies  were  about 
twenty  feet  wide,  and  creepers  climbed  up  the  supports. 

"  There  is  a  lock  on  the  door,"  said  someone  in  a  tone 
of  pride.  I  had  taken  for  granted  there  was  a  lock,  for  I 
had  not  then  learned  there  is  rarely  such  a  thing  in  Mexico. 

It  was  a  large  room,  so  large  that  even  though  lighted 
with  a  couple  of  lamps  the  corners  seemed  far  away.  Two 
of  the  men  remained  chatting  on  the  balcony,  while  the 
others  proceeded  to  show  me  how  to  lock  the  door. 

A  twist,  a  squeak,  an  ominous  crack,  and  lo,  the  key 
had  broken  in  the  lock ! 

Here  was  a  pretty  state  of  affairs  !  The  men,  looking 
terribly  distressed,  suggested  they  could  get  out  of  the 
window  and  jump  to  the  floor  below — the  door  being  the 
only  opening  on  to  the  balcony  ;  this  idea  was  all  very  well, 
but  what  was  to  happen  to  me  } 

Finally,  a  towel  was  bound  round  the  stump  of  the  key, 
some  Herculean  efforts  ensued,  and  the  thing  turned  in  the 
lock.     Yes,  it  moved,  and  in  a  moment  the  door  stood  wide. 


20  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

What  a  relief  for  everyone.  Mentally  vowing  not  to 
attempt  to  lock  it  again,  I  said  good-night,  and  the  four 
men  with  their  lanterns  tramped  down  the  wooden  stair- 
case and  away  into  the  darkness. 

Here  was  a  funny  beginning.  I,  alone  in  a  large  square 
room  without  a  lock  on  the  door — outside  a  wide  balcony 
and  staircase.  No  one  in  the  house  but  myself — and 
outside  darkness,  impenetrable  darkness,  with  the  roar  of  a 
river  below,  and  the  maddening  hum  of  those  crickets. 
I  had  not  even  seen  the  place,  for  it  was  dark  when  I 
arrived.  Everyone  and  everything  was  strange  to  me, 
and — I  may  as  well  confess — I  did  feel  more  than  a  little 
nervous,  though  I  hoped  my  hosts  had  not  noticed  the 
"  white  feather."  They  were  concerned  enough  about  my 
comfort  without  that.  I  argued  with  myself,  decided  I  was 
a  fool,  and  went  to  bed. 

Morpheus  soon  claimed  me  for  his  own — the  result, 
doubtless,  of  a  good  constitution  and  a  clear  conscience — I 
forgot  all  about  bandits  and  pistols,  thin  knives  and  large 
hats,  and  did  not  even  dream  of  the  broken  looking-glass 
seen  a  couple  of  days  previously  at  Houston,  which  had 
much  impressed  me. 

It  so  happened  that  I  arrived  at  Houston — the  junction 
from  Galveston  for  San  Antonio — at  nine  o'clock  one  night, 
and  as  I  was  hungry  and  had  a  couple  of  hours  to  spare 
before  the  "  sleeper  "  started,  a  friend  advised  it  would  be 
well  to  get  some  supper.  Opposite  to  the  station  was  an 
hotel. 

"Can  we  have  something  to  eat?"  my  friend  ventured 
to  ask. 

"  No,  certainly  not,"  was  the  uncompromising  reply. 

Nothing  is  served  in  an  ordinary  American  hotel  except 
at  meal  times.  In  fact,  it  seems  to  be  an  unpardonable 
crime  to  wish  to  eat,  excepting  at  the  moment  when 
everyone  else  does.      However,  we  walked  about  the  town, 


LIFE    ON  A    MEXICAN  RANG  HE.  21 

and  at  last  found  one  small  restaurant  open.  It  was  not 
grand,  but  half-a-dozen  men  and  a  couple  of  women  were 
there.  A  large  mirror  covered  the  wall  from  floor  to  ceiling 
near  our  table,  and  in  it  were  two  round  holes  and  many 
splinters  !      "  What  were  they  ?  "  we  enquired. 

"  The  result  of  a  pistol-shot  fired  last  night,"  replied  the 
waiter,  quite  calmly.  "  The  landlord  regrets  there  has  not 
been  time  to  have  the  glass  replaced." 

Even  to-day  men  go  about  armed  in  the  Southern  States 
of  America  and  Mexico,  and  shootino^  bouts  are  not  uncom- 
mon,  as  the  prisons  testify.  To  a  Londoner  all  this  seems  a 
little  alarming  !  I  slept  peacefully,  nevertheless,  till  suddenly 
awakened  by  a  loud  noise,  a  wild  wind,  cold  and  chill.  I  sat 
up  in  bed,  shaking  from  head  to  foot. 

I  found  the  candle  and  struck  a  match  which  was 
instantly  blown  out.  Great  Heavens !  Where  was  I 
and  what  could  have  happened  ^  Why,  oh  why  did  I 
ever  come  to  Mexico  ?  A  second  attempt  was  equally 
unsuccessful.      I  fervently  wished  1  had  never  been  born. 

The  wind  had  risen  towards  morning,  and  my  door  blown 
open  by  a  more  than  usually  boisterous  blast.  That  was 
all.  I  got  up,  shut  the  door,  dragged  my  big  trunk  against 
it,  and  was  getting  back  into  bed  again  when  I  heard  an 
extraordinary  howling  growl.  Were  the  horrors  of  that 
night  never  to  end  ?  It  was  still  pitch  dark — just  4  a.m. — 
what  new  trouble  did  that  strano-e  noise  forebode  ? 

I  sat  down  and  wished  mvself  at  home  aq;ain.  I  was 
probably  alone  in  an  unknown  house,  for  the  carpenter  and 
his  wife  whom  my  host  had  gone  to  fetch  might  have  refused 
to  leave  their  home  in  order  to  sleep  on  the  floor  beneath 
for  my  protection,  and  if  I  were,  I  did  not  even  know  where 
those  four  men  slept  "  across  the  garden."  The  crickets 
still  hummed  unceasingly  ;  but  above  all  else  those  weird 
howls  continued. 

Next   morning   I   learned  they   were   caused    by  wolves. 


22  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

and  before  many  days  were  over  I  became  well 
acquainted  with  their  music  and  appearance.  My  lock 
was  repaired  the  next  day,  and  after  a  survey  of  the 
country  in  general  and  my  house  in  particular,  I  had  no 
more  silly  frights.  Still,  on  a  ranche  one  must  be  prepared 
for  anything,  and  life  is  distinctly  interesting.  It  is  busy 
simply  because  everyone  has  to  do  everything  for  himself. 
It  is  almost  impossible  to  procure  servants,  and  a  friend, 
the  daughter  of  a  Lincolnshire  parson,  wrote  the  other  day, 
saying  "she  had  been  without  any  domestic  at  all  for  more 
than  a  year,  had  cooked,  washed,  scrubbed,  cleaned,  in  fact 
done  everything  for  her  three  brothers,  the  greatest  effort 
being  to  try  to  keep  awake  in  the  evenings  to  play  accom- 
paniments or  sing  to  the  boys  !  "  "  For,  '  she  added,  "  I'm 
often  so  dead-tired  after  cooking  the  supper  on  the  top  of 
the  day's  work,  that  if  the  boys  didn't  help  me  wash  up,  I 
really  couldn't  keep  my  eyes  open  to  play  a  note." 

The  men  are  always  out,  they  get  up  before  daylight, 
breakfast,  and  away  after  the  cattle  they  gallop.  Perhaps 
they  get  home  to  dinner,  more  often  not,  in  which  latter 
case  they  take  food  with  them.  They  usually  return 
about  sunset,  and  after  a  wash  and  brush-up  settle  down 
to  supper  and  a  "civilised  hour"  before  retiring  to  bed 
about  7.30  or  8  o'clock.  Posts  are  rare,  once  or  twice 
a  week,  in  really  out-of-the-way  places  once  or  twice  in 
three  months  ;  indeed,  letters  often  have  to  be  fetched  a 
distance  of  many  miles. 

It  is  a  healthy  life,  interesting  to  a  man  fond  of 
sport,  horses  and  animals  ;  but  intellectually  it  is 
stultifying.  Any  man  or  woman  who  manages  to  read 
and  keep  up  with  the  times,  only  does  so  by  a  tremendous 
effort.  Bodily  fatigue  robs  one  of  the  inclination  to  read, 
and  difficulty  of  procuring  literature  means  self-denial  in 
other  ways,  in  order  that  a  purchase  may  be  made  at  all. 

A    ranche    is    often    two    or    three    hundred     miles     in 


LIFE   ON  A    MEXICAN  RANCHE.  23 

circumference,  hedged  in  by  wire  fencing,  and  as  some 
haciendas  are  sixty  and  seventy  miles  across,  it  will  be 
readily  understood  that  there  is  not  much  society. 

"Can  you  be  ready  to  start  soon  after  5  a.m.  .?  "  asked 
one  of  my  bachelor  hosts. 

"  What,  in  the  dark,  with  the  stars  } "  I  enquired 
anxiously. 

"  Yes,  just  before  dawn,  for  we  have  to  drive  twelve 
miles,  and  that  takes  us  over  three  hours  in  this  rough 
country." 

Of  course  I  was  ready,  who  would  not  have  been  ready 
for  such  an  interesting  spectacle  as  a  cattle  rozind-tip  ?  It 
must  be  owned  the  view  from  the  balcony  at  4  a.m.  was 
not  inspiriting ;  true,  the  stars  shone  brightly  in  the  deepest 
blue  of  heaven,  but  a  thick  mist  lay  over  the  river,  and  a 
heavy  dew  was  falling.  But  just  as  there  is  no  twilight  in 
Mexico,  so  there  is  no  dawn,  and  before  breakfast  was  over 
the  lamp  and  the  flickering  of  the  cheerful  7iiesquite  wood 
fire — which  emits  a  delicious  odour — were  being  extinguished 
by  the  streaks  of  a  new-born  day. 

The  ca7'r2Laje  (or  coach)  was  at  the  door  ;  the  driver 
with  his  big  Mexican  hat,  and  couple  of  sturdy  mules. 
Luncheon  was  stowed  away  behind,  and  my  host  and  I 
mounted  to  seats  beneath  the  canopy  which  such  vehicles 
always  have.  I  can  only  liken  such  a  coach  to  an  acrobat 
who  apparently  has  no  bones,  and  can  turn  and  twist 
and  wriggle  any  and  every  way.  A  Mexican  coach  has 
no  apparent  springs  ;  its  wheels  are  loose,  everything  is 
loose.  The  wheels  on  the  near  side,  in  fact,  can  run 
along  the  bed  of  a  stream,  while  those  on  the  off-side  are 
high  up  on  the  bank,  and  although  the  vehicle  looks  and 
continually  feels  as  though  it  were  turning  over,  nothing 
happens.  In  spite  of  bangs  and  bumps  that  verily 
make  one's  heart  stand  still,  the  carruaje  merrily  con- 
tinues   its    way    over    the     roadless     ranche,    momentarily 


24  MEXICO  AS  I  SAW  IT. 

threatening  to  eject  its  passengers,  despite  their  holding 
on  in  very  truth  "  for  dear  Hfe." 

The  sagacity  of  the  mule  is  surprising  ;  he  knows  the 
prickly  pear  will  penetrate  even  his  coarse  coat  and 
tough  hide,  and  \ALhen  one  is  driving  along  over  the 
trackless  prairie,  if  prickly  pear  comes  in  the  way  of  a 
pair  of  mules  they  instantly  part,  each  pulling  away  as 
far  as  his  traces  will  allow.  A  moment  later,  perhaps, 
the  funny  mountain  cart  has  to  pass  between  a  couple  of 
cacti  ;  the  mules  see  them  in  a  moment,  and  will  draw 
quite  close  together,  their  sides  touching,  in  their  endeavours 
to  avoid  the  thorns.  Every  plant  in  Mexico  seems  to  have 
a  thorn,  and  some  of  them  are  three  inches  long. 

A  cattle  "  round-up  "  is  a  novel  experience.  Once  a  year 
every  ranche  has  its  stock-taking — truly  stock-taking  in 
its  literal  sense — and  when,  as  in  this  instance,  there  were 
some  ten  thousand  head  of  cattle,  the  entertainment  lasts 
about  a  fortnight. 

Twenty-five  cowboys  were  employed  to  collect  the 
cattle — not  all  at  once,  but  from  six  to  twelve  hundred 
animals  at  a  time.  Men  accustomed  to  the  district  are 
absolutely  essential,  as  they  alone  know,  from  experience, 
where  to  find  the  herds,  which  will  sometimes  move 
fifteen  miles  in  a  single  night,  and  when  found  how  to 
work  them  to  the  "  corral,"  or  cattle  pen. 

The  main  corral  is  usually  about  the  middle  of  the 
hacienda,  and  is  composed  of  two  or  three  large  cattle 
pens,  the  palings  of  which  are  from  seven  to  eight  feet 
high,  so  that  the  animals  cannot  jump  over  them. 

Before  dawn  the  cow-boys  start  off  to  some  water  hole 
where  they  expect  to  find  a  herd  ;  there  they  may  perhaps 
be  lucky  enough  to  come  upon  two  or  three  hundred  head 
at  once,  in  which  case  they  surround,  while  taking  care  not 
to  frighten,  them,  for  once  alarmed  a  herd  is  very  difficult 
to  move.     The  animals  are  allowed  to  run  in  little  groups 


LIFE    ON  A    MEXICAN  RAN  CHE.  25 

called  "pie,"  given  their  heads,  in  fact,  until  they  become 
accustomed  to  such  an  unusual  sight  as  a  number  of 
mounted  men.  When  the  herd  is  trotting  along  pretty 
steadily,  some  of  the  cowboys  will  slip  off  to  collect  mx)re 
cattle,  and  if  they  luckily  come  across  a  "bunch,"  drive  it 
to  the  original  herd.  It  is  wonderful  to  see  the  dexterity 
of  the  stockmen,  the  way  they  gallop  round  the  herd  to 
bring  in  a  straggler,  whip  one  up,  or,  if  necessary,  lasso  or 
rope  another.  The  riders'  enormous  straw  hats,  coloured 
shirts  and  wonderfully  tight  brown  trousers — made  of 
leather  to  protect  the  legs  in  the  low  scrub — the  Mexican 
saddles,  the  quaint  stirrups  of  leather,  various  metals  or 
wood,  to  keep  the  sun  from  burning  the  feet,  and  the  yards 
of  rope  thrown  over  the  saddle  pommel,  all  combine  to 
produce  a  marvellously  picturesque  whole. 

On  jogs  the  herd  ;  bulls,  cows,  and  calves — even  a  baby 
calf  two  or  three  days  old  will  travel  beside  its  mother  for 
four  or  five  miles.  The  number  is  always  increasing. 
Generally,  if  well  handled,  they  go  along  quite  nicely, 
at  other  times  they  give  no  end  of  trouble.  For 
instance,  I  heard  of  a  case  in  which  thirty  men  got  nine 
hundred  cattle  up  to  a  corral  gate,  and  after  five  hours 
they  only  succeeded  in  driving  seven  hundred  inside, 
the  remainder  had  just  galloped  away. 

It  is  very  exciting  to  join  the  finish  of  a  drive,  and  this 
can  only  be  done  on  horseback.  Some  animal  is  always 
breaking  out  of  the  line,  A  cowboy  rides  in  front  to  lead 
the  herd,  two  or  three  men  are  placed  at  intervals  down 
each  side  of  the  group  ;  others  form  a  line  at  the  back  to 
drive  the  beasts  on,  so  that  the  cattle  seem  to  be  literally 
surrounded,  yet  one  or  two  find  a  way  of  escape  every 
few  minutes,  and  often  great  chases  ensue,  which  person- 
ally I  found  most  thrilling.  Occasionally  a  horse  is  hurt, 
when  a  bull  turns  and  charges,  but  the  men  nearly  always 
seem  to  escape.      It  is  a  wonderful  sight  to  see  hundreds  of 


26  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

cattle  driven  over  the  plains.  Many  of  them  are  such 
splendid  beasts,  that  when  they  have  the  courage  to  break 
through  the  line,  one  instinctively  hopes  they  may  escape. 
Some  look  so  grand  as  they  show  fight,  and  as  the  sun 
glistens  on  their  coats,  the  dust  gives  a  sort  of  pic- 
turesque mysticism  to  those  in  the  rear,  and  a  round-up 
becomes  most  artistic  as  well  as  skilful. 

When  the  herd  reaches  the  gates  of  the  corral,  the 
cowboys  slip  behind,  and  forming  into  a  horseshoe  in  the 
rear,  gradually  close  in  until  they  get  them  all  into  the 
stock-pens.  Of  course,  many  of  them  objected,  and 
wonderful  fights  took  place  between  the  will  of  beast  and 
the  skill  of  man  ;  but  finally  they  were  all  driven  inside 
the  largest  corral.  The  best  way — indeed  the  only  way — 
to  drive  them  in  properly,  is  to  get  the  entire  herd 
narrowed  down  into  a  long  line  ;  if  they  get  spread  out 
the  difficulty  is  considerably  increased.  Cowboys  seem 
able  to  do  anything.  The  head  man  gives  his  orders  like 
a  general,  and  the  herd  is  made  to  go  almost  in  single  file 
if  he  so  ordains,  and  yet  these  animals  are  all  wild,  and 
only  once  a  year,  at  the  annual  round  up,  do  they  ever 
come  near  men  at  all.  It  is  very  interesting  to  watch 
the  cowboys  at  work  ;  their  dexterity  in  the  saddle,  their 
power  with  the  ropes,  and  their  wonderful  quickness,  can 
only  be  acquired  by  long  experience.  Buffalo  Bill's  cowboy 
performances  which  so  fascinated  London  may  be  seen  any 
day  on  the  open  prairie.  At  the  round-up,  by  four  o'clock 
in  the  afternoon,  I  saw  thirteen  hundred  cattle  penned  ; 
which  completed  the  work  for  that  day. 

Next  morning  at  the  first  streak  of  dawn,  the  men, 
who  were  living  in  camp — some  in  tents,  others  sleeping 
in  the  open  between  mackintosh  sheets,  or  rolled  in  a 
blanket — were  out  again,  dividing  the  cattle  for  branding. 
This  branding  is  a  great  feature  of  the  yearly  round-up, 
as    all    animals    born    since    the    last   count    have    to    be 


LIFE    ON  A    MEXICAN  RANG  HE.  27 

"  branded  for  life,"  on  this  occasion.  It  sometimes 
happens  that  a  particularly  wily  beast  may  escape  for 
years,  and  I  chanced  to  see  a  seven-year-old  bull  caught 
for  the  first  time  ;  he  was  a  magnificent  creature.  He  had 
long  eluded  capture,  but  the  day  of  reckoning  came,  and 
his  fight  for  independence  was  worth  travelling  to 
Mexico  to  see.  He  deserved  to  escape  ;  nevertheless 
he  was  conquered — and  branded. 

A  magnificent  bull  truly !  First  one  of  the  boys 
managed  to  lasso  him  by  the  horns.  He  shook  his  head, 
charged,  and  went  full  tilt  after  his  adversary,  who  only 
managed  to  scramble  over  the  wooden  railings  in  time 
to  miss  those  tremendous  horns  as  they  rattled  into  the 
planks.  Another  cowboy,  by  this  time,  had  caught  him  by 
one  leg  ;  but  his  strength  was  splendid,  and  he  plunged 
and  snapped  the  rope.  Times  without  number  those  men 
fearlessly  approached  that  wild  beast,  lassoed  him,  and  once 
they  actually  managed  to  throw  him.  Caught  by  the  head 
and  both  fore  and  hind  legs  as  he  was,  he  got  up,  snapped 
all  three  ropes,  shook  himself  free,  and  galloped  off  more 
wild  than  ever.  He  bore  himself  like  a  hero,  but  even- 
tually was  vanquished. 

Branding  is  managed  thus  : — 

A  gate  leading  from  the  large  into  a  smaller  pen  is 
opened,  and  the  calves  are  all  driven  through.  A  man  sits 
on  high,  and  as  the  animals  pass  along  a  narrow  walled 
lane  built  for  the  purpose  of  causing  them  to  move  slowly, 
he  calls  out  to  the  stock-keeper — who  marks  them  down 
accordingly — their  age  and  sex  from  the  appearance  of 
their  heads.  At  the  end  of  the  lane  is  a  revolving  gate, 
and  so  cleverly  does  another  man  work  it  that  he  makes 
all  the  calves  go  into  one  pen,  and  the  remaining  stock 
into  another. 

The  poor  baby  calves,  naturally  feeling  sad  at  being 
separated    from    their    mothers,   a  regular    concert  ensues. 


28  MEXICO  AS  I  SAW  IT. 

When  all  are  within  the  branding  pen,  the  chief  excitement 
of  the  day — requiring  the  greatest  skill — begins.  Each  calf 
has  to  be  caught  for  branding,  and  each  animal  distinctly 
objects  to  the  operation.  Two  or  three  cowboys  in  the 
corral  are  mounted,  the  rest  are  on  foot,  and  every  man 
has  his  ten  yards  of  rope,  for  lassoing  the  creatures,  hang- 
ing in  front  of  his  saddle.  The  ranchero  gallops  off  to 
the  bunch,  throws  his  rope  over  the  calfs  head — and  a 
calf  of  a  year  old  is  a  big  fellow,  especially  if  he  be  a  bull — ■ 
and  drags  him  kicking  and  plunging  back  to  the  place 
where  the  branders  are  ready  for  him.  Then  another  man 
on  foot,  with  the  most  marvellous  dexterity,  will  lasso  him 
by  the  hind-legs,  and  perhaps  a  third  catches  him  by  the 
same  means  in  front,  when  the  cowboys  finally  throw  him 
over.  Some  of  the  animals  show  wonderful  pluck,  fight, 
caper  and  dance  around  in  grand  style.  I  loved  the  roping  ; 
it  was  simply  splendid  to  see  the  certainty  with  which  it 
was  done.  The  lasso  had  a  loop  at  one  end,  and  was  thrown 
in  such  a  way  that  the  loop  should  fall  just  in  front  of  the 
calf's  legs.  As  he  moved,  he  jumped  into  the  noose,  and 
like  a  flash  of  lightning  the  thrower  pulled  it  tight.  Poor 
calf!  he  struggled  bravely  ;    but  could  not  get  away. 

In  a  hole  in  the  earth,  is  a  fire  with  hot  irons,  made  in 
the  shape  of  a  long  poker,  bearing  the  owner's  initial  or 
sign  at  the  far  end,  like  an  open  seal.  Immediately  the 
calf  is  thrown,  one  of  the  branders  takes  his  iron,  and  hold- 
ing it  against  the  animal's  side,  burns  the  hair  down  to 
the  flesh,  so  that  if  he  ever  wanders  off  the  ranche  his 
ownership  can  be  proved.  A  snip  in  the  ear  also  adds 
to  the  identity.  These  markings  are  all  registered  at  the 
Municipal  Offices,  so  that  there  is  little  difficulty  in 
establishing  ownership  of  ranche  animals,  whether  horses 
or  cattle.  The  former  have  a  much  smaller  and  neater 
brand,  and  their  ears  are  not  cut.  If  the  beast  be  young 
its  brand  grows  with   it,  and  a  mark  six  inches  long  when 


LIFE   ON  A    MEXICAN  RANG  HE.  29 

made  on  a  calf  a  few  weeks  old,  will  be  fifteen  inches  at 
least  on  a  full-grown  animal.  When  the  operation  is  over, 
up  jump  the  branded  calves,  and  with  a  shake  and  a  snort 
away  they  run,  but  not  before  the  hair  of  the  tail  has  been 
cut  straight,  so  that  in  a  moment  a  cowboy  can  see  which 
beast  is  no  longer  wanted,  and  can  turn  his  attention  to 
animals  whose  tails  have  not  been  snipped. 

It  takes  an  entire  day  to  brand  three  or  four  hundred 
calves  ;  but  when  the  business  is  over  they  are  allowed  to 
go  back  to  their  mothers,  lowing  for  them  on  the  other  side 
of  the  paling.  They  are  all  left  together  for  an  hour  or 
more,  to  give  them  an  opportunity  of  finding  their  relations. 
When  one  sees  over  a  thousand  animals  in  a  pen,  it  seems 
perfectly  amazing  that  a  calf  should  know  its  own  parent  ; 
but  the  mother,  at  any  rate,  immediately  recognises  her 
own  offspring. 

If  possible,  the  animals  are  let  out  that  night,  so  that 
they  may  get  to  food  and  water,  and  oh,  what  a  noise,  what 
dust,  as  helter  skelter  they  rush  through  the  gates  away  to 
their  native  heaths,  never  to  come  near  man  again  for  a 
whole  year,  unless  when  sick  or  wanted  for  slaughter. 

At  Mr.  Merrill's  hacienda,  Soledad  (meaning  solitude),  I 
saw  a  round-up  for  the  butcher.  It  took  place  out  on 
the  open  prairie.  Six  or  seven  hundred  animals  were 
collected  together  ;  the  butcher  rode  in  amongst  them,  and 
one  by  one  selected  the  hundred  he  wanted.  Each  beast 
was  cut  out  in  turn,  that  is  to  say,  separated  from  the  herd. 
The  fattened  steers  went  to  one  side,  and  were  finally 
driven  in  single  file  for  counting,  and  to  see  that  they  were 
all  up  to  the  required  weight,  and  were  then  driven  off  to 
the  train.  Butchers  buy  in  quantities  like  this,  and  choose 
stock  on  the  prairie. 

Now  for  a  little  practical  information  about  a  Mexican 
hacienda.  It  is  roughly  reckoned  that  fifteen  acres  ot 
land  will  support  one  animal  ;  thus,   ten  thousand  head  of 


30  MEXICO  AS  I  SAW  IT. 

cattle  will  require  one  hundred  and  fifty  thousand  acres  of 
land  ;  but  everything  depends  on  the  water  supply.  With- 
out natural  water-courses  it  is  often  necessary  to  bore  and 
pump  water  by  means  of  a  small  windmill  into  a  tank  or 
earth-deposit  ;  of  course,  the  windmill  when  once  fixed 
works  alone.  By  means  of  these  artificial  supplies,  the 
cattle  are  usually  able  to  obtain  water  every  four  or  five 
miles,  which  is  quite  sufficient  distance.  In  spite  of  all 
precautions,  however,  drought  is  not  unknown.  That 
proves  an  awful  calamity,  and  generally  spells  rtiiii  to  many. 
In  the  event  of  a  drought  the  animals  will  wander  in  a 
body  to  the  river,  when  for  miles  from  its  bed  they  eat  up 
all  the  grass.  Gradually,  they  are  driven  so  far  back  for 
food  that,  the  grass  and  the  water  being  too  distant  for 
them  to  travel  daily  from  the  one  to  the  other,  the  poor 
creatures  simply  lie  down  and  die  by  the  way.  Thousands 
perish  in  this  manner,  and  the  only  thing  to  do  to  avert 
pestilence  is  to  collect  the  carcases  together  and  burn  them. 
The  wolves  and  vultures  make  an  end  of  those  not  disposed 
of  in  this  m'anner. 

By  the  way,  Mexican  wolves  often  kill  little  calves,  and 
the  sight  of  a  calf  without  a  tail  means  that  though  Mr. 
Wolf  had  the  tail,  its  owner  was  clever  enough  to  save  its 
body.  Lynxes  abound  ;  but  seldom  molest  the  calves — 
chickens  are  more  in  their  line,  while  the  panther  will  not 
only  kill  colts,  but  also  devour  young  horses. 

Native  cattle  cost  about  fifteen  dollars  (Mex.),  or  thirty 
shillings  apiece;  they  are,  however,  poor  and  unsatisfactory. 
"  Improved  cattle " — meaning  those  crossed  with  other 
breeds,  notably  Herefords  and  Durhams — are  more  profit- 
able ;  they  fetch  from  twenty-eight  to  thirty  dollars  a  head, 
or  from   £2  los.   to  ^3. 

It  is  always  well  to  be  as  practical  as  possible,  and  since 
some  of  my  readers  may  like  to  have  a  clearer  idea  of  the 
value  of  stock   on  a  northern  ranche  in   Mexico,  and   the 


LIFE    ON  A    MEXICAN  RANG  HE. 


31 


number  of  beasts    to  the    acreage,    the  following    table,    is 
from  a  stock  book  after  the  yearly  "  round-up." 

On  a  cattle  hacienda  of  225,000  acres,  or  about  340  square 
miles,  the  amount  of  stock  was  somewhat  as  follows  : — 


Number. 

Class. 

Value  per  Head. 

Total. 

3>292 

Cows 

$15 

$49,380 

1-095 

Calves            

7            

7,665 

443 

Heifers,  l  year 

10           

4,430 

835 

,,         2  years 

12           

10,020 

1,050 

Steers,  i  year 

16.50      

17,325 

1,638 

,,        2  years 

19 

31,122 

1,438 

„        3     „ 

26.50      

37,948 

1,119 

4     ,, 

30           

33,570 

45 

21  Bulls,  I  year 

15 

315 

24  Bulls  (Herefords) 

135 

3,240 

68 

Bulls,  2  years 

20           

1,360 

1S3 

Bulls,  3     ,, 

30 

5,490 

11,200 

$201,865 

5,978 

Auxiliary  Stock  (see 

below) 

7,660 

17,178 

AUXILIARY 

STOCK. 

.$209,525 

Number 

Class. 

Value  per  Head. 

Total. 

5,341 

Goats,  4  years 

$0.50       

.     $2,670.50 

3 

Jacks,  4     ,, 

30 

90 

7 

14 
31 

6 
II 

3 
13 

8 

9 
7 
7 

16 
26 
24 

37 
22 

33 

31 

44 

4 

121 

159 
5,978 


Colts 
Jennies 


I  year 


2  years 
I  year 
Colts 


Mules 


,,     3  years 

2 
,,     I  year 
Colts 
Colts,  Horse,  3  years 
,>  5,        2     ,, 

,,  ,,       I  year 

Odd 
Colts,  Filly,  3  years 

,,  ,5  2       ,, 

,,         ,,       I  year 
Odd 
Stallions 
Mares 
Saddle  Horses 


20 
10 

7 

5 

4 

3 

1.50 
40 
30 
20 

15 
10 

8 
5 
4 
2 

3 

2 

2 

I 
20 

6 
12 


20 
70 
98 
155 
24 

33 

4.50 
520 
240 
180 
105 

70 
128 
130 

96 

74 
66 
66 
62 

44 

80 

726 

1,908 

$7,660.00 


The    value    of    the    live    stock   exported    from    Mexico 
in    1899  was  greater  than    in  either    of   the  two  previous 


32  MEXICO  AS  I  SA  W  IT. 

years,    and    amounted    to    ^634,710    in    1899,    as    against 
^436,719  in    1897  and   ^500,479  in    1898. 

The  night  of  my  first  cattle  round-up  proved  most 
exciting.  A  cow  had  been  killed  in  the  rush  in  the  corral, 
and  the  stockmen  dragged  the  carcase  outside,  and  left  it 
at  some  little  distance  from  the  pen.  About  ten  o'clock  at 
night  when  all  was  dark  and  still — the  stillness  of  a  Mexi- 
can night  is  wonderful,  and  the  clearness  of  the  dark  blue 
heavens  soul-thrilling — a  pack  of  prairie  wolves,  smelling 
the  feast  from  afar,  made  their  way  towards  it.  Even  two 
wolves  will  make  a  tremendous  noise  as  they  reply  in  rapid 
succession  each  to  the  other's  howls,  and  half-a-dozen  such 
prowlers  can  furnish  a  fine  concert,  albeit  in  a  somewhat 
dreary  key. 

The  cattle,  which  had  not  been  turned  out,  were  pre- 
sumably asleep  when  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Wolf  and  family 
arrived  on  the  scene.  One  of  the  herd  must  have  noticed 
the  noise,  or  possibly  the  wolves  got  into  the  pen  and  tried 
to  secure  a  baby  calf ;  whatever  the  cause,  all  the  cattle 
became  alarmed,  and  the  thirteen  hundred  of  them  stam- 
peded. With  a  roar  of  fright  they  rose  as  one  beast.  In 
spite  of  massive  palings  seven  or  eight  feet  high,  built  of 
thick  planks,  the  animals  in  front  made  a  rush,  those  behind 
pushed  after  them,  and  in  a  twinkling  twenty-three  feet  of 
paling  were  thrown  down,  and  hundreds  of  free  animals 
flying  madly  over  the  prairie.  Like  wild  things  they  fled, 
bellowing  with  fear.  A  stampede  is  something  appalling, 
yet  only  one  animal  was  killed  in  the  rush — another  cow, 
which  we  found  lying  a  quarter  of  a  mile  away  next  day, 
almost  devoured  by  seventeen  prairie  wolves,  who  were  so 
busily  employed  upon  the  carcase  they  did  not  even  notice 
our  approach  until  we  were  quite  near  them.  What  the 
wolves  do  not  eat  the  vultures  soon  finish  ;  they  hover 
around,  ready  to  swoop  down  at  any  moment. 

On  a  ranche  one  may  sometimes   find  a  skeleton  of  a 


LIFE    ON  A    MEXICAN  RANG  HE.  33 

horse  or  cow  torn  in  pieces,  for  the  wolves  in  their  wild 
hurry  to  gnaw  the  flesh  from  the  bones  frequently  sever 
the  joints  asunder. 

A  stampede  nearly  always  occurs  at  night,  and  generally 
in  a  corral.  In  the  open  some  of  the  cattle  remain  awake 
for  protection,  "  on  guard,"  so  to  speak  ;  the  only  thing 
that  will  then  cause  a  stampede  is  the  appearance  of  a  man 
on  foot.  Such  an  unusual  apparition  frightens  them,  and 
at  the  sight  off  they  go.  A  man  on  foot,  however,  is  rarely 
about  at  any  time,  and  almost  never  at  night,  so  such 
rushes  seldom  occur.  In  a  pen  cattle  feel  they  are  shut 
in,  and  therefore  settle  down  to  sleep  contentedly.  If  one 
becomes  scared,  they  all  seem  to  rise  simultaneously,  like 
the  bang  of  a  cannon  every  hoof  touches  the  earth,  and 
away  they  go  at  lightning  speed.  Big  steer  cattle  will  run 
seven  or  eight  miles  when  really  frightened,  and  lose  more 
flesh  in  one  night  than  they  can  make  up  in  a  month,  even 
on  good  pasture. 

A  man  once  told  me  he  had  known  a  herd  so  wild 
that  they  rushed  right  over  the  edge  of  a  bluff,  never 
even  seeing  it  in  their  alarm  ;  the  result  being  that  fifty- 
three  mangled  carcasses  were  found  at  the  bottom  of  the 
ravine  !  As  may  be  gathered,  a  stampede  is  a  thing  to  be 
avoided  at  all  costs.  Once  the  cattle  are  started  the  only 
way  to  lessen  the  danger  is  to  set  them  "  milling,"  viz., 
running  round  and  round  in  a  circle,  and  the  cowboys  are 
so  experienced  they  can  often  succeed  in  doing  this,  even 
with  a  big  herd.  That  night  the  boys  were  in  their  saddles 
in  a  twinkling,  and  caught  up  the  cattle  before  the  herd  had 
run  two  miles.  It  was  wonderful.  They  surrounded  the 
animals,  and  although  some  naturally  escaped,  the  majority 
were  set  "  milling,"  and  finally  brought  back  to  the  pens. 

In  these  stampedes  the  long  horns  often  do  much  harm, 
and  now  it  is  quite  usual  to  cut  the  horns  of  cattle, 
especially    bulls,     at     two     years     old.       This    is    also    an 

3 


34  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

advantage  when  travelling  by  rail,  for  most  cattle  are  borne 
to  their  doom  in  freight  vans,  and  much  bloodshed  is  con- 
sequently saved  by  blunted  horns. 

"  What  kind  of  cattle  are  most  dangerous  to  meet 
alone  ?  "    I  once  enquired. 

"A  single  cow,"  was  the  reply.  "She  is  vicious  and 
vindictive,  and  may  rush  straight  at  you.  A  bull  on  the 
other  hand  is  not  so  quarrelsome,  and  if  he  should  charge 
he  closes  his  eyes  at  the  moment  of  attack,  so  you  can 
dodo-e  him  as  he  makes  his  rush.  A  matador  can  figfht  a 
bull  ;  but  I  do  not  think  any  matador  would  venture  to 
fight  a  frenzied  cow !  Strangely  enough,  herds  in  the  open 
are  never  dangerous  ;  but  a  few  cattle  scattered  about  will 
sometimes  go  for  a  man,  more  particularly  if  he  happens  to 
be  unmounted." 

A  poor  little  calf  was  born  in  the  corral  on  the  night  of 
the  stampede,  and  the  next  morning  when  we  went  out,  we 
found  the  wee  thing  looking  very  sad  and  clejected,  bel- 
lowing for  its  mother.  I  patted  it  and  it  sucked  my 
fingers,  and  stuck  its  nose  against  me,  evidently  attracted 
by  the  warmth.  No  one  seemed  to  think  anything  of  the 
mite's  being  left  alone  ;  that  is  the  fashion  in  ranche-land. 
A  small  calf  is  told  by  its  fond  mamma  to  remain  where  she 
leaves  it,  and  off  she  goes,  perhaps,  for  an  entire  day,  to 
search  for  food.  Towards  evening,  however  far  she  has 
wandered,  she  returns  to  her  baby,  stays  all  the  night  with 
it,  and  next  morning  goes  off  and  leaves  it  again.  As  the 
calf  grows  bigger  it  learns  to  follow  its  mother,  and  by  the 
time  it  is  a  week  or  a  fortnight  old,  runs  by  her  side. 

Cattle  have  curious  ways  of  their  own  ;  for  instance,  an 
ordinary  herd  will  string  in  to  water  about  nine  or  ten 
o'clock  every  morning.  One  of  the  old  cows  will  start  off, 
generally  to  the  same  pool,  and  the  others  invariably 
follow  in  single  file.  They  walk  right  into  the  water  and 
drink,  then  go  and  lie  down  on  the  bank  to  chew  the  cud. 


e5 


"    -<^^*}"'^^^  If  J 


I 


Oh 


LIFE    ON  A    MEXICAN  RANG  HE.  35 

They  stay  near  water  until  about  four  o'clock  in  the  after- 
noon in  the  summer,  during  which  time  they  will  drink, 
perhaps,  three  or  four  times.  Towards  the  cool  of  the 
evening  they  begin  to  wander  away,  going  in  single  file 
along  the  paths  they  have  made.  Many  animals  have 
their  own  particular  feeding-ground,  and  travel,  perhaps, 
three  or  four  miles  back  to  it,  not  stopping  to  eat  any- 
thing by  the  way.  They  feed  until  it  is  quite  dark,  often 
indeed  when  it  is  dark,  and  then  lie  down  and  go  to  sleep. 
By  daylight  they  are  busily  eating  again,  and  when  satisfied 
trail  off  to  the  water. 

In  summer,  cattle  go  every  day  to  water  ;  but  in  the 
cooler  weather  they  do  not  drink  for  two  or  three  days  at  a 
time  ;  especially  if  they  get  lots  of  prickly  pear,  a  form  of 
cactus  which  is  the  salvation  of  prairie  cattle  in  times  of 
drought  ;  it  is  very  juicy,  being  'iy  per  cent,  water.  The 
animals  eat  the  cactus,  including  all  the  prickles  and 
thorns — they  are  real  prickles  and  thorns — and  sometimes 
their  mouths  get  so  full  of  them  that  when  they  are  killed 
it  seems  wonderful  they  could  have  managed  to  exist  under 
the  circumstances,  for  the  back  of  the  tongue  looks  like  a 
cushion  stuck  full  of  pins. 

To  encourage  the  cattle  to  eat  sufficient  prickly  pear  to 
live  on  in  times  of  drought,  the  ranchmen  cut  it  off  the 
stem,  make  a  fire,  and  burn  off  the  worst  of  the  prickles, 
which  they  do  by  holding  the  leaves  over  the  flames  for  a 
moment  ;  the  wildest  animals  will  follow  anyone  about  in 
the  tamest  manner  to  obtain  this  specially  prepared  deli- 
cacy, which  often  goes  far  to  save  their  lives.  A  train  of 
Mexican  carriers,  who  travel  about  with  perhaps  forty  carts 
of  goods  and  half-a-dozen  oxen  yoked  to  each  cart,  feed 
their  animals  entirely  on  these  pears.  The  species  abounds, 
and  good  jelly  is  made  from  the  fruit.  The  flower,  too,  is 
pretty. 

The  real  wild  cattle,  which  still  exist  in  parts  of  Mexico, 

3* 


36  MEXICO  AS   I  SA  W  IT. 

are  weedy  and  small,  with  enormous  horns  ;  they  live  on 
the  prickly  pear  and  grass,  never  seek  water  like  the  ranche 
cattle,  and  never  drink  at  all  except  when  it  rains  and  they 
find  a  puddle.  They  are  fast  dying  out,  indeed  ranche 
owners  shoot  them  whenever  they  get  a  chance.  Some- 
times the  cowboys  rope,  and  neck  or  yoke  a  wild  beast 
with  a  gentle  one,  hoping  to  tame  the  monarch  of  the  hills, 
but  as  a  rule  this  does  not  answer  ;  the  wild  animal  generally 
dying  of  a  broken  heart.  He  simply  lies  down,  sulks,  and 
kicks.  It  is  found  better  to  kill  them  at  once,  for  otherwise 
they  cause  a  great  deal  of  trouble. 

These  wild  beasts  unfortunately  entice  the  tamer  animals 
away  into  the  hills. 

Certain  ranches  are  famous  for  the  fighting  qualities 
of  their  bulls,  and  to  see  these  bulls  caught  for  the 
bull-ring  is  thrilling.  A  herd  is  collected  into  a  corral. 
The  finest  bulls  of  the  appointed  age  are  marked  by  the 
Caporal  (head  ranche-man),  and  C2it  out  from  the  herd. 
The  Caporal  rides  into  the  herd,  lassoes  his  bull,  and 
gradually  works  him  to  the  gate,  where  he  is  driven 
into  another  pen.  Several  bulls  will  thus  be  collected 
together.  But  it  is  not  easy  work,  and  the  play  of 
some  of  them  is,  to  the  onlooker,  really  alarming.  They 
rush  at  the  horses  and  try  to  gore  them  ;  they  tear 
after  the  men  and  endeavour  to  toss  them,  and  both 
men  and  horses  are  in  peril  of  their  lives.  Indeed,  the 
more  fight  the  bull  shows,  the  more  will  he  be  prized 
in  the  ring.  Once  in  the  pen,  which  for  this  purpose  is 
adjoining  the  railway  line,  one  of  them  is  driven  along  a 
passage  way  which  gradually  slants  upwards,  at  the  end 
of  which  is  the  box  which  is  to  carry  him  to  destruction. 
He  is  not  put  into  an  ordinary  freight  van,  like  beef 
cattle;  but  into  a  box  just  big  enough  to  hold  him, 
and  where  he  is  in  the  dark.  Thus  in  solitary  grandeur 
each    beast  goes  in  his  own  little  chamber   to   his   doom. 


LIFE    ON  A    MEXICAN  RANG  HE.  37 

What  afterwards  happens  to  him  will  be  described  in 
another  chapter. 

There  are  two  exciting  performances  at  a  ranche. 
One  is  "  tailing  the  bull,"  the  other  is  riding  him. 
Tailing  is  a  funny  entertainment,  but  a  little  cruel.  A 
ranchero  at  full  gallop  rushes  after  a  bull  ;  his  horse 
comes  up  to  it.  Instead  of  attempting  to  lasso  the  beast, 
the  cowboy  waits  till  he  is  up  to  him,  leans  down,  catches 
him  by  the  tail,  swings  the  tail  over  the  lasso  pommel  in 
front  of  his  Mexican  saddle,  and  throws  the  bull.  A  bull 
is  a  heavy  beast,  and  the  nerve,  pluck,  dexterity  and 
strength  necessary  for  this  enterprise  are  enormous,  both 
on  the  part  of  the  cowboy  and  his  horse. 

To  ride  a  bull  is  equally  exciting.  First  he  must  be 
lassoed  and  thrown.  A  rope  is  sometimes  put  round 
his  body  for  the  rider  to  hold  on  to,  and  the  cowboy 
seats  himself  astride  the  great  carcase  as  it  lies  on 
the  ground.  The  lassoes  are  let  loose  ;  up  jumps  the 
bull.  He  has  never  had  anything  on  his  back  before.  He 
kicks  and  plunges,  bucks  and  jumps,  and  then  off  he  goes 
at  full  gallop.  The  stockman  is  invariably  thrown  in  the 
end,  but  meantime  the  pair  have  good  sport.  I  have  seen 
more  courage  on  the  prairie  than  in  the  bull-ring  ! 


38 


C  H  APTE  R    I  I  I. 

HORSE    ROUND-UP. 

We  all  knovv^  horses  in  cabs  and  carriaoes  ;  some  of  us 
have  hunted  or  seen  them  racing  ;  but  a  horse  never 
looks  so  splendid,  so  bold  and  fearless  as  in  his  semi-wild 
state  on  the  prairie. 

Horses  are  easier  to  deal  with  than  cattle  ;  the  reason  for 
which  is  soon  explained.  The  horse  is  a  more  delicate  crea- 
ture ;  he  needs  constant  care  ;  consequently  the  cowboys 
are  often  after  the  bunches  of  horses,  attending  to  one  that 
has  gone  lame,  to  another  that  is  sick,  and  so  on.  Horses 
do  not  go  about  in  huge  herds  like  cattle  ;  in  well-managed 
ranches  they  are  taught  to  run  in  bunches  of  colour. 

"  What  is  a  bunch  }  "  I  enquired  when  I  first  heard  that 
expression. 

"  A  bunch  or  manada  is  composed  of  twenty-five  mares 
and  one  horse,  or  a  jack  donkey  when  mules  are  required," 
was  the  reply  ;  "  each  manada  is  well  selected  as  to  colour — 
bay,  brown,  white,  chestnut,  roan,  or  black — so  that  the 
breeding  may  be  uniform." 

It  was  a  wonderful  sio-ht  to  see  a  number  of  these 
bunches  coming  in.  About  twenty  men  went  out  before 
day-break,  and  it  was  nine  hours  before  they  had  collected 
sixteen  manadas  or  bunches,  and  brought  them  up  to  the 
corral.  This  amounted  to  four  hundred  and  sixteen  horses, 
and  as  there  are  usually  in  addition  seventy  per  cent  of 
foals,  the  Q^rand  total  was  about  seven  hundred  ! 


Horses  on  the  prairie. 


Whiles  on  llie  prairie. 


{To  face  page  z^- 


HORSE   ROUND-UP.  39 

Seven  hundred  almost  wild  horses  galloping  over  the 
prairie  and  yet  when  Cortes  landed  four  hundred  years  ago 
a  horse  or  an  ox  was  unknown  ! 

Like  a  small  cloud  they  first  appeared  on  the  horizon  ; 
so  small,  indeed,  that  my  untrained  eye  did  not  see  any- 
thing for  nearly  an  hour  after  it  was  first  sighted.  Then 
a  soft  grey  mist  appeared  to  be  rising  from  the  ground  ; 
thicker  and  thicker  it  grew  until  it  looked  like  smoke  or 
spray  ascending  forty  or  fifty  feet  above  the  prairie.  No 
one  can  understand  the  dust  of  a  ranche  who  has  not  seen 
it,  neither  can  any  person  realise  the  strange  effect  of  the 
sound  of  hundreds  of  galloping  feet,  like  a  cavalry  charge, 
while  the  animals'  heads  gradually  emerge  from  clouds  of 
flying  sand.  So  great  was  the  dust  that  it  was  almost 
impossible  to  realise  the  number  ;  seven  hundred  horses, 
and  yet  only  about  a  dozen  of  the  foremost  to  be  seen  ! 

I  had  seated  myself  on  the  top  of  one  of  the  great  corral 
gates,  that  top  piece  which  binds  the  whole  structure 
together,  and  there,  Kodak  in  hand,  waited  the  advent  of 
that  army  thundering  over  the  plain.  On  it  came — on  blew 
that  bank  of  sand,  and  then  one  by  one  the  heads  emerged. 
As  I  saw  them,  and  prepared  to  take  snap-shots,  they  saw 
me,  and  prepared  to  run  away  !  They  had  probably  never 
beheld  a  woman  before,  and  certainly  not  one  perched  up  on 
a  bar  twenty  feet  above  the  ground  !  They  were  startled 
and  inclined  to  fly  ;  then  one,  more  plucky  than  the  rest, 
seeing  an  open  space  beyond  the  gateway,  galloped  beneath 
me,  and  all  the  others  quickly  followed  suit.  They  looked 
simply  splendid,  their  nostrils  dilated,  their  long  tails  and 
flowing  manes,  with  a  certain  wild  beauty  about  them  all. 
The  finely  built  thoroughbreds,  the  dear  little  foals  looked 
so  tree  and  independent ! 

The  common  Mexican  horse  is  a  weedy  specimen,  and 
of  little  or  no  value.  Stock  horses  only  cost  about  six 
dollars  (Mex.  =  12/-)   apiece,   but   "improved   breeds"   are 


40  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

worth  twenty  dollars  "  all  through."  Of  course  this  means 
buying  in  numbers.  One  hundred  or  a  hundred  and 
twenty  dollars  are  readily  given  for  a  three-year-old  colt 
from  Mr.  Brodrick  Cloete's  ranche  at  Sabinas,  and  sixty-five 
to  seventy-five  dollars  for  a  two-year-old  mule,  while  from 
three  hundred  and  fifty  to  four  hundred  dollars  are  paid  for 
a  pair  of  trained  mules  of  good  size.  Mr.  Cloete  has  made 
a  speciality  of  horse-breeding  ;  he  has  imported  pedigree 
stock,  including  a  pair  of  American  trotters,  a  couple  of 
Cleveland  bays,  etc.  The  pedigree  horses  are  all  branded 
on  the  cheek,  and  not  on  the  flank  like  cattle.  Fine  breeds 
of  horses  that  have  been  imported  stand  the  climate  well  ; 
but  among  English  bulls  the  death-rate  has  proved  to  be 
about  ninety  per  cent  ! 

The  native  horse  is  generally  too  small.  The  idea  of 
getting  larger  animals  is  to  increase  the  weight.  The 
most  saleable  horse  in  Mexico  is  from  15  to  15}^  hands 
high,  and  such  stature  can  only  be  found  in  inipT-oved  stock. 
During  cold  weather— in  Northern  Mexico  (about  four 
months) — thoroughbred  horses  and  jacks  are  stabled  and 
fed  ;  native  horses  of  course  do  not  require  this  care,  nor 
even  the  cross-breeds. 

It  seems  marvellous  that  bunches  of  colour  do  not  get 
mixed  up  on  a  ranche  some  twenty  miles  across  ;  but  the 
animals  are  taught  to  run  together.  At  first  they  are  sorted 
carefully  as  to  build  and  colour,  till  twenty-six  are  settled 
on  ;  a  boy  is  sent  for  days  to  ride  out  with  the  bunch,  and 
his  duty  is  always  to  keep  them  together.  Continually 
riding  round  and  round  them,  he  sends  each  straggler  back 
to  the  main  body,  till  gradually  they  become  so  friendly  that 
nothing  will  separate  the  happy  little  family  ;  so  much  so, 
indeed,  that  if  two  or  three  bunches  chance  to  come 
together,  they  sort  themselves  again  and  oft  go  the  twenty- 
five  mares  with  their  horse. 

Boys    begin    this    sort    of   work   almost    as  babies   on  a 


HORSE   ROUND-UP.  41 

ranche.  One  sees  a  toddlinq;  lad  of  five  lassoiiiQ:  the 
chickens  and  pigs  outside — or  even  inside — his  father's 
httle  hut,  and  so  accustomed  do  they  become  to  riding  that 
they  are  nearly  all  bow-legged !  This  is  not  surprising 
when  one  learns  a  man  spends  ten  hours  out  of  twelve  on 
the  saddle.      They  walk  badly  ;  but  they  ride  magnificently. 

The  head  stock-man,  or  Caporal,  is  nearly  always  an 
Indian.  One  man  I  saw  was  a  very  fine  specimen  ;  he 
inherited  the  marvellous  traits  of  his  tribe — instinctively 
knew  where  to  find  water,  could  prophesy  the  weather 
accurately  for  days  ahead,  could  predict  drought,  and  of 
course  was  a  splendid  rider,  thinking  nothing  of  seventy  or 
eighty  miles  a  day  on  a  dozen  different  mounts.  He  was 
very  black  and  had  a  most  villainous  face.  He  looked  like 
a  murderer,  and  rumour  whispered  he  had  verified  his  looks. 
There  were  a  couple  of  dozen  boys  under  him  ;  oh  dear, 
what  a  life  he  must  have  led  them  !  But  he  was  invaluable 
as  regards  the  stock ;  to  his  animals  he  was  kind  and 
thoughtful — verily  a  strange  specimen  of  humanity. 

Another  Caporal,  of  whom  I  saw  a  good  deal,  was 
quite  a  character.  He  came  from  Texas,  and  had  been 
a  cowboy  for  thirty-six  years,  having  maintained  him- 
self entirely  since  the  age  of  eight.  He  did  not  know  who 
his  father  and  mother  had  been. 

'*  I  don't  think  I  ever  had  any,"  he  laughingly  said. 
He  could  neither  read  nor  write,  yet  he  managed  to 
keep  the  most  accurate  accounts  in  his  head,  and  could 
tell  exactly  what  stock  there  had  been  at  each  round-up 
for  years  past,  or  the  prices  the  beasts  fetched  at  any 
particular  time.  He  went  to  bed  when  the  sun  went  down, 
and  got  up  when  it  rose.  He  knew  almost  every  animal 
on  his  ranche,  and  there  were  at  least  fifteen  thousand  ; 
if  he  did  not  know  them  all  he  knew  about  most  of  them, 
and  had  theories — probably  correct  ones — about  the  rest. 
He  was  most  polite  ;     but  treated  even  a  lady  quite  as    a 


42  MEXICO  AS  I  SAW  IT. 

"  pal  "  and  equal ;  in  fact  he  was  one  of  Nature's  gentlemen. 
A  man  with  the  strongest  sense  of  honour  and  justice, 
determined,  self-reliant,  plucky,  he  was  yet  gentle  as  a  child 
with  a  sick  animal. 

Cowboys  are  studies  ;  they  seem  to  have  been  born 
in  the  saddle,  to  be  capable  of  enduring  the  greatest 
fatigue  without  ever  feeling  tired.  For  instance,  one 
day  after  starting  before  daylight  to  round-up  cattle, 
they  did  not  get  back  to  the  corral,  where  we  were 
waiting  for  them,  until  two  o'clock  ;  thus  they  had  been 
ten  hours  in  the  saddle,  during  which  time  they  had 
been  incessantly  on  the  gallop.  They  unsaddled  their 
horses,  and  settled  down  to  their  dinner.  They  closed 
round  the  camp  fire,  but  not  to  sit  like  other  folk,  oh  dear 
no !  Each  man  knelt  on  one  knee  while  he  sat  on  the  heel 
of  his  other  foot,  and  ate  his  dinner  with  his  plate — on  the 
ground!  It  seemed  to  me  a  most  uncomfortable  and 
unrestful  proceeding,   but  apparently  they  liked  it 

We  had  not  intended  to  stay  out  to  lunch,  and  were 
therefore  unprovided  with  the  usual  basket. 

"  Very  sorry,  Mrs.  Tweedie,"  said  my  host ;  "  but  it 
is  two  o'clock  and  either  you  must  join  the  cowboys' 
fare,  or  wait  three  hours  till  we  ride  home  again." 

"Anything  will  do  for  me,"  I  replied.  "A  glass  of 
milk  and  a  piece  of  bread  and  butter  will  suit  splendidly." 

"  You  have  asked  for  three  things  I  cannot  supply,"  said 
my  host,  looking  woebegone.  "  Milk  we  never  have  ;  wild 
cows  give  very  little,  and  they  have  to  be  lassoed  to  be 
milked  and  then  hold  the  milk  back,  so  it  is  not  worth  the 
trouble.  Butter  ditto,  and  bread  is  never  baked  at  these 
camps.  They  make  a  hard  biscuit  which  lasts  for  days. 
So  you  see  the  three  most  ordinary  forms  of  food 
cowboys  have  to  do  without." 

Here  was  a  revelation  !  But  it  tauoht  me  not  to  ask  for 
such  luxuries  in  future. 


A  cowboy  luncheon  party. 


Bunches  "  of  horses  on  the  prairie. 


[  To  face  page  42. 


HORSE   ROUND-UP.  43 

I  was  given  a  place  at  this  strange  repast,  and  a  tin 
pail  turned  upside  down  served  as  a  seat  ;  a  plank  of 
wood  supported  by  an  old  box  and  another  bucket  made 
an  excellent  table.  I  never  enjoyed  anything  more  in  my 
life  than  that  cowboys'  dinner-party  ! 

We  had  hot  meat  served  in  a  tin  can  ;  the  beef  was 
"jerked"  or  sun-dried.  When  an  animal  is  killed,  the 
best  joints  are  reserved  for  immediate  use,  if  the  weather 
be  cool  enough  for  it  to  keep  at  all  ;  but  the  loin, 
round,  neck,  etc.,  are  all  jerked.  That  is  to  say,  they  are 
cut  into  thin  slices,  from  a  quarter  of  an  inch  to  an  inch 
thick,  thoroughly  salted,  and  then  hung  out  in  the  sun 
to  dry.  In  from  thirty-six  to  forty-eight  hours  they  are 
sufficiently  dried,  and  will  keep  for  almost  any  time.  This 
is  indeed  much  the  same  process  as  that  of  the  biltong  of 
South  Africa  ;  in  summer-time  all  the  meat  has  to  be  sun- 
dried  at  once  ;  but  in  winter  the  necessity  is  not  so  great. 

Our  dish  of  jerked  beef  had  been  cut  into  a  sort  of 
mince,  flavoured  with  onions  and  fried,  and  it  was  really 
excellent  for  anyone  who  did  not  mind  onions.  We  had  a 
kind  of  ship's  biscuit  made  over  the  camp  fire  ;  large  round 
cakes,  eighteen  inches  in  diameter,  and  about  two  inches 
thick  ;  besides  which  we  were  given  tea  and  sugar. 

Everyone  seemed  to  eat  heartily,  but  in  twenty  minutes 
the  meal  was  finished,  and  putting  cigarettes  in  their 
mouths,  the  cowboys  went  off  to  the  corral  to  brand  their 
horses.  Poor  little  colts,  their  legs  were  so  fine  it 
seemed  more  sad  to  see  them  thrown  for  branding 
than  the  calves.  They  looked  such  pretty  fragile  things, 
one  felt  really  sorry  for  them.  But  anyway  they  were  not 
going  to  the  butcher's  knife,  and  their  lot  would  probably 
be  happier  than  that  of  the  cattle. 

Most  ranches  have  herds  of  goals,  because  they  are 
paying  animals.  From  five  hundred  to  ten  thousand 
goats    are,    as    a    rule,     to     be    found    on     an     hacienda. 


44  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

Each  herd,  consisting  of  twelve  hundred,  is  looked  after 
by  a  pastor.  He  goes  forth  with  his  flock  every  morning, 
stays  with  them  at  their  pasturage  all  day,  and  brings 
them  back  to  camp  before  night-fall  to  avoid  the  wolves. 
On  a  well-organised  ranche  every  goat  is  counted,  so  that 
each  evening  if  any  are  missing  they  may  be  sought  for 
and  found. 

There  is  always  a  ready  market  for  goat  flesh  at  a 
ranche,  the  price  varying  from  3  to  3^  dollars  (Mexican 
=  6/-  to  7/—)  per  head  ;  this  includes  the  skins,  which 
the  purchaser  re-sells  for  about  half-a-crown. 

It  is  the  custom  on  a  ranche  for  the  master  to  find 
rations  for  all  his  hands,  and  while  the  cowboy  is  given 
beef,  the  ordinary  labourer  receives  Q^oat,  which  is  the 
natural  diet  of  the  poorer  classes  who  are  sufficiently 
well  off  to  eat  meat  at  all.  Goat-fiesh  is  quite  good, 
indeed  many  people  would  not  know  it  from  mutton 
unless  they  were  told  to  the  contrary ;  but  in  Mexico, 
as  in  all  warm  climates,  the  meat  is  invariably  tough 
because  it  cannot  be  properly  hung.  Oh,  the  joy  of 
tender  beef  and  mutton  after  months  of  stringy,  newly- 
killed  food  !  Could  anything  taste  more  delicious  than  an 
English  sirloin  of  beef,  or  an  American  chop  ? 

As  I  am  a  warm  advocate  of  riclino-  astride  for  women, 
perhaps  it  may  be  well  to  describe  why  and  how  I  came 
to  adopt  that  mode.  My  first  long  expedition  was  in 
Iceland,  where  on  one  occasion  a  girl  and  I  accomplished 
a  distance  of  163  miles  in  three  days  and  a  few  hours.* 
This  was  in  a  land  where  there  were  no  bridges,  rivers  had 
to  be  swum  by  the  ponies,  there  were  no  roads,  and  rough 
paths  and  dangerous  mountain  passes  formed  the  track. 
Such  rides  could  never  be  accomplished  on  a  side-saddle, 
whereas  mounted  astride  the   woman    is   no   longer  handi- 

*  "A  Girl's  Ride  in  Iceland." 


>.>'^^^c&-r^'^  ..y 


'"■■  «- 


r\ 


^ — X 


■1^^^ 

^^^^^f 

-     \ 

■ 

m 

P^-^ 

^1 

A  coal  herd. 


^Making  loilillas,  ihe  staple  iood  ol  the  country. 


\To  face  page  44. 


HORSE   ROUND-UP.  45 

capped,  and  provided  she  have  equal  strength  with  her  male 
companion,  can  go  where  he  goes.  I  believe  I  was  the  first 
to  advocate  riding  astride  in  book  form  ;  the  volume  insti- 
tuted that  long  war  of  controversy  "Should  Women  Ride 
Astride  ?  "  in  the  Field  and  Daily  Graphic  about  ten  years 
ago.  Oh,  how  some  of  these  dear  people  jumped  on  me 
for  "  immodesty,  indelicacy,"  and  other  words  of  condemna- 
tion !  To  have  written  such  sentiments  was  a  crime,  to  have 
ridden  in  such  style  an  offence  against  all  propriety.  But  I 
still  live ! 

Later  I  adopted  the  same  plan  in  Morocco,  and,  much  to 
the  surprise  of  my  good  friends,  in  Mexico — where  they  are 
barely  accustomed  to  the  fact  of  a  woman  mounting  a  horse 
at  all,  and  certainly  not  on  a  man's  saddle — yet  I  hope  and 
trust  I  succeeded  in  riding  down  their  prejudices. 

There  is  nothing  new  in  sitting  astride.  Women  w^ho 
have  to  traverse  lonQ-  distances  on  horseback  in  foreio;n 
countries,  invariably  do  so  ;  indeed,  every  woman  in 
England  rode  in  this  manner  until  side-saddles  were  in- 
troduced by  Anne  of  Bohemia,  wife  of  Richard  IL,  and 
many  continued  to  ride  across  the  saddle  until  a  much  later 
date. 

As  a  girl  I  followed  the  hounds,  both  fox  and  stag,  on  a 
side  saddle,  in  which  position  I  rode  from  the  time  I  was 
seven  years  old  ;  therefore  I  have  no  prejudice  against  that 
fashion,  and  am  perfectly  aware  that  it  looks  more  elegant, 
and  one  might  add,  more  feminine  on  ordinary  occasions. 
But,  for  purposes  of  travel,  where  rough  country  has  to  be 
crossed,  when  eight  or  ten  hours  a  day  are  spent  in  the  saddle, 
it  is  absolutely  essential  for  the  comfort  of  both  the  woman 
and  the  horse  that  the  former  should  ride  astride.  Ridinof 
man-fashion  is  far  less  tiring,  the  position  is  perfectly  natural, 
and  in  no  way  injurious  to  health.  It  is  also  preferable,  because 
the  spine  is  not  twisted.  As  women  ride  at  the  present 
moment,  horses  with  sore  backs  are  unfortunately  no  rarity  ; 


46  MEXICO  AS  I  SAW  IT. 

it  is  true  these  galls  are  caused  by  bad  riding,  still  such 
things  are  more  easily  avoided  by  the  use  of  a  man's  saddle. 
A  horse  is  sooner  knocked  up  when  ridden  by  a  woman  than 
a  man,  yet  the  latter  is  usually  the  heavier  weight ;  but  then 
he  is  properly  balanced. 

Then  aeain,  in  mountainous  districts  where  the  animals 
have  to  clamber  from  one  rocky  prominence  to  another,  it  is 
positively  unsafe  to  be  seated  on  a  side-saddle,  and  when 
the  path  leads  round  the  edge  of  a  precipice  on  the  near  side, 
should  the  horse  stumble  and  fall,  he  naturally  falls  on  top  of 
his  unfortunate  rider,  who  has  not  the  slightest  chance  of 
extricating  herself.  There  is  no  doubt  about  it  that  sitting 
sideways  is  absolutely  dangerous  for  rough  country  work  ; 
is  injurious  to  a  woman's  health,  is  always  fatiguing,  and 
besides  knocks  up  a  mount  much  sooner  than  riding  man- 
fashion. 

Having  advocated  that  women  should  ride  astride  for  long 
distances,  it  may  be  well  to  describe  the  kit  which  experience 
has  proved  to  be  the  most  useful.  Ordinary  riding  breeches 
and  boots  are  absolutely  indispensable,  and  if  the  country 
traversed  be  in  any  way  tropical,  brown  boots  are  preferable, 
as  they  are  not  so  heating  to  the  feet.  They  must  be  high, 
as  insects  bite,  and  thorns  prick,  and  anyone  who  has  been 
in  the  Tropics  knows  that  they  can  do  both  with  consider- 
able severity. 

Being  so  far  attired  for  riding  the  difficulty  centres  in  the 
skirt  or  habit.  On  most  occasions  it  is  impossible  to  carry 
anything  but  the  lightest  luggage  ;  for  instance,  in  the 
Mexican  mountains  everything  had  to  be  transported  by 
means  of  mules.  Therefore,  as  one  practically  lives  in 
one's  riding-dress,  it  is  essential  that  riding-dress  should  be 
as  comely  as  possible,  something  that  will  represent  a  skirt 
in  Ordinary  wear,  and  yet  be  practicable  for  riding.  I  find 
closely- woven  serge  or  whipcord  the  best  materials,  as  these 
while  light  do  not  tear.      Having  selected  the  material,  it  is 


Mrs.  Alec  Tweedif-s  Divided  Skirt,  for  riding  astride.     Shown  lyin-  flat  open. 
2.    Deep  Hem.       3.    p:iastic  bands  (inside)  to  pass  the  legs  through. 
4.   t  olds,  which  button  over  for  walking. 


[  To  face  page  46. 


HORSE  ROUND-UP.  47 

not  difficult  to  make  the  skirt.  It  must  be  narrow,  and 
gored  for  standing  ;  some  six  or  eight  inches  from  the 
ground  does  not  look  outrageously  short,  even  at  a  luncheon 
party,  and  when  mounted  will  come  down  well  over  the  in- 
step, as  may  be  seen  in  the  photographs  (Chap.  XIX.).  The 
skirt  can  fasten  either  at  the  back  or  in  front,  because  In 
both  places  a  large  fold  of  the  material  is  necessary  to  make 
the  habit  sit  well ;  the  front  is  preferable.  The  material  can 
be  drawn  perfectly  tight  over  the  hips,  but  before  and  behind 
it  must  be  full  near  the  hem,  and  therefore  must  be  folded  in, 
two  or  three  inches  at  the  waist.  The  back  opening  is 
better  sewn  securely  so  far  down  as  the  saddle  (when  the 
rider  is  seated),  that  is  to  say,  about  twelve  inches  from  the 
waist  belt.  When  riding  the  skirt  falls  over  loosely  on  both 
sides,  and  is  kept  from  blowing  about  or  getting  out  of 
place  by  a  couple  of  elastic  straps  inside  each  side  piece, 
through  which  the  legs  pass.  Its  own  weight,  and  the 
width  of  the  hem  are  capable  of  keeping  it  down  even  in  a 
strong  wind.  When  mounted  the  rider  from  the  off  or  near 
side  looks  as  if  wearing  a  habit,  and  nobody  can  tell  she  is 
seated  astride,  unless  immediately  before  or  behind  her. 

When  off,  if  the  skirt  is  well  cut  and  the  pleats  full,  it  falls 
into  position  by  itself,  and  looks  like  an  ordinary  skirt,  but 
in  order  to  be  more  sure  that  it  will  remain  closed  when 
clambering  about  stony  ruins  or  jumping  over  streams,  it 
is  well  to  have  a  couple  of  buttons  about  a  foot  apart  to 
fasten  both  the  back  and  front  openings.  These  can  be 
adjusted  or  undone  in  a  moment,  and  when  secured  nobody 
can  possibly  tell  that  the  wearer  is  not  dressed  in  an  ordinary 
skirt. 

To  be  more  sure  of  keeping  the  habit  in  its  place,  when 
mounted  an  elastic  band  can  be  fastened  from  the  back  to 
the  front  of  the  skirt  so  that  it  may  not  ride  above,  or  over 
the  seat  of  the  saddle. 

A  habit  of  this   kind    is  very    simple,    and    anyone    can 


48  MEXICO  AS  I  SAW  IT. 

manufacture  it  out  of  an  old  skirt  at  home.  Indeed,  the  one 
depicted  in  the  photographs,  showing  the  skirt  both  off  the 
horse  and  on,  was  made  in  this  way,  I  am  perfectly  aware 
that  a  smart  habit  bodice  would  look  better,  and  if  the 
photograph  had  been  taken  in  Piccadilly,  should  have 
donned  one  for  the  occasion,  but  as  this  picture  was  a  "  snap- 
shot "  some  seven  thousand  miles  away  from  Piccadilly, 
in  the  wilds  of  Aztec  ruins  under  hot  Southern  skies,  a 
shirt  was  cooler,  if  not  so  becoming,  and  a  sombrero  more 
practical  if  not  so  smart  as  a  top  hat ! 

It  is  hardly  necessary  to  repeat  the  well-known  maxim 
that  whatever  exercise  we  may  be  taking  it  is  advisable  to 
wear  light  flannel  rather  than  cotton,  and  this  applies  to 
riding  as  much  as  to  anything  else.  Therefore,  ye  women 
travellers,  before  starting  on  long  and  fatiguing  expeditions, 
lay  these  facts  to  heart,  and  remember  that,  as  mentioned 
above,  cross-riding  is  no  novelty,  that  ladies  in  the  old  days 
mounted  in  that  manner,  that  all  native  women  who  ride  for 
business  and  not  for  pleasure  invariably  sit  astride.  My 
own  experience  only  endorses  the  advisability  and  practica- 
bility of  adopting  this  sensible  and  convenient  style. 

Ranche  life  is  very  interesting  ;  but  it  generally  leads 
to  little.  After  talking  matters  over  with  a  number  of 
Englishmen,  I  found  they  seemed  to  be  of  opinion  that 
physically  it  is  a  pure  healthy  life  ;  but  mentally,  an  utter 
failure.  It  is  existence  in  the  present,  but  offers  no  future. 
Men  so  situated  cannot  make  enough  money  to  save, 
and  thus  they  become  alienated  from  their  families,  from 
their  country,  and  all  home  ties  !  For  the  first  five  years 
or  so  it  is  all  romantic  and  wild  ;  they  ride  and  shoot, 
sleep  in  the  open,  forget  top  hats  and  dress  clothes,  and 
feel  like  heroes  of  romance  and  adventure.  Freedom  from 
conventionality  has  its  charms  at  first,  yet  a  few  years  later 
they  long  for  that  very  conventionality,  long  to  feel  the 
necessity  for  wearing  a  collar  or   having  a  shave,  yearn  to 


HORSE   ROUND-UP.  49 

have  a  chat  with  a  lady,  and  to  feel  the  gentle  influence  of 
the  female  sex. 

"I  even  long  to  hold  a  good  woman's  hand,"  a  man 
once  said  to  me  ;  "it  elevates  and  refines  a  chap  ;  it  makes 
him  try  to  be  better  than  he  is.'' 

"  But,"  as  several  men  remarked,  "  I  do  not  feel  it 
would  be  fair  to  marry.  I  should  not  care  to  take  a  wife 
from  any  but  my  own  class  of  life,  and  it  would  be  wrong 
to  ask  any  lady  to  come  to  such  isolation,  such  monotony 
and  loneliness,  as  life  in  a  ranche  must  prove  to  a  woman. 
We  have  our  work,  and  that  often  takes  us  away  from 
home  for  days  at  a  time  ;  would  it  be  right  to  ask  a  girl  to 
stay  alone  in  such  a  far  away  place,  without  a  soul  to  whom 
she  can  speak,  or  would  it  be  fair  to  take  her  with  me  to 
distant  parts  of  the  ranche,  where  she  would  have  to  sleep 
in  a  waggon,  or  perhaps  on  the  ground  ?  " 

It  is  a  difficult  problem,  this  ranche  life,  and  one  which 
apparently  affects  men  in  different  ways.  Many  take  to 
drink  ;  some  become  reserved  and  almost  morose  ;  others, 
on  the  other  hand,  have  such  a  lono-ino-  for  human 
sympathy,  that  they  cannot  talk  or  hear  enough  when 
they  meet  a  stranger.  All,  whatever  their  character,  seem 
to  become  more  chivalrous  to  women  than  men  who  live 
constantly  in  their  midst,  and  cannot,  apparently,  do  enough 
for  one  of  the  gentler  sex.  They  will  cook  a  little  surprise 
for  her,  boil  warm  water  for  her  bath,  gather  flowers  and 
put  them  in  her  room,  get  up  early  to  catch  fish  for  break- 
fast, ride  miles  before  daylight  to  fetch  a  pound  of  butter, 
collect  wood  and  light  a  fire — not  only  think  of  a  hundred 
litde  kindnesses,  but  actually  do  ihem,  with  all  the  grace  of 
a  courtier  in  the  days  when  knighthood  was  in  flower.  It 
is  very  sweet  of  them  ;  but  it  is  a  hard  school  in  which 
they  have  learned,  poor  things  ! 

There  are  absolutely  no  women  !  It  was  all  very  strange, 
after  being  entertained  at  lunches,  receptions  and  dinners 

4 


50  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

by  some  of  those  great  Women's  Clubs  in  the  States,  after 
meeting  Hterally  hundreds  of  the  brilliantly  clever,  smart 
women  of  America,  to  travel  in  Mexico,  and  hardly  ever 
see  a  female,  not  even  a  servant ! 

There  are  not  enough  men  to  go  round  in  England,  and 
there  are  a  dozen  men  to  every  woman  in  Mexico,  so  let  me 
recommend  the  possibilities  of  that  country  to  old  maids. 

Probably  the  warmth  of  the  climate  does  not  make  fatty 
matter  a  necessity,  for,  as  we  all  know,  the  colder  the  land, 
the  more  fat  is  required,  hence  the  Esquimo's  love  of 
blubber  and  oil.  Anyway,  butter  is  an  almost  unknown 
commodity,  even  in  Mexico  City. 

On  the  ranches  there  is  no  butter,  because  there  are  too 
many  cows  with  too  little  milk.  What  butter  there  is  in  the 
cities  is  simply  awful.  It  is  made  without  salt,  is  perfectly 
white,  like  lard,  and  if  its  tastelessness  guarantees  its  purity, 
I  am  Goth  enough  to  prefer  a  little  salt.  At  the  hotels  it  is 
served  for  foreigners  ;  and  actually,  the  American  residents 
in  the  capital  itself  send  to  the  United  States  for  their  table 
butter.  In  really  Mexican  homes  it  is  seldom  seen.  At 
their  early  coffee,  they  dip  their  roll,  or  sweet  bread,  into 
the  liquid,  and  the  same  with  the  afternoon  chocolate. 

The  native  of  Mexico  is  practically  always  an  Indian, 
while  the  high-class  Mexican  is  a  Spaniard,  or  of  Spanish 
descent,  the  different  characteristics  of  the  two  races  being 
strongly  marked.  The  cowboys  of  Mexico  are  generally 
Indians.  They  are  supplied  with  horses  and  saddles  by 
their  masters,  and  they  are  usually  paid  about  ten  dollars 
(Mexican  money=20s.),  a  month,  with  food  and  lodging. 
Every  ranche  has  a  little  shop  where  the  hands  can  buy 
things.  Their  chief  requirements  in  this  line — for. from 
their  ranche  rations  they  eke  out  enough  to  support  an 
entire  family — are  tobacco  and  hats.  Large  sums  are  spent 
on  the  hat,  which  often  costs  from  twenty  to  thirty  dollars, 
and    is    trimmed    with    silver    cord,    embroidered    on    felt  : 


HORSE   ROUND-UP. 


51 


however  poor  a  man  may  be,  he  always  saves  up  for  his 
hat.  In  other  respects,  he  and  his  family  may  be  in  rags  ; 
but  a  fine  head  covering  is  considered  a  necessity. 

On  their  feet  the  natives  wear  a  sort  of  sandal,  without 
stockmgs  ;  but  cowboys  when  riding,  wear  boots  in  order  to 
protect  them   from  sun  and  thorns.      Calico,  prints,  muslin 
for   dresses,    cloth   for    men's    clothes,   coats,    trousers,    and 
blankets  are  all  sold  at  the  hacienda  shop,  and  the  goods 
charged  to  the  cowboy's  account,  which  is  usually  overdrawn. 
The  days  of  slavery  are  over  ;  nevertheless,  in  many  of 
the  native   Mexican  ranches  there  are  still  "peons"  {i e 
more  or   less  slaves),  who   are   bound  to  their  masters  by 
debt.      rhey   are,   indeed,    so  bound,  that  they  cannot  oet 
away,  and  if  they  try  to  escape  the  master  sends  for  them 
and  generally  manages  to  evade    the    law,   and  insists  on 
their  return.      The  following  facts  show  to  what  magnitude 
the    "peons    system"    has    grown.       On    one    ranche    in 
ban  Luis,  where  about  a  thousand  persons  are  employed 
the  total  debt  of  the   peons  amounts  to  one  hundred  and 
twenty  thousand  dollars  !     Anyone  buying  a  ranche  of  this 
sort  IS  obliged  to  purchase  the  peons'  debt,  which  practically    1 
means  buying  them  as  slaves.     The  law  while  prohibitino-    ^ 
this  system,  practically  encourages  it.  "^ 

I  said  just  now  that  a  cowboy  earned  about  one  pound 
sterlmg  a  month  ;  and  alas,  in  the  Southern  States  and  in 
Mexico  there  are  hundreds  of  public  school  boys  and  Uni- 
versity men  earning  that  miserable  sum,  and  only  too  glad 
to  get  it.  To  my  personal  knowledge,  the  saddest  of  iTves 
are  being  dragged  out  on  some  of  those  ranches.  One  man 
about  twenty-eight  years  of  age,  told  me  his  story,  which 
brought  tears  to  my  eyes. 

"My  father  was  a  clergyman  in  Yorkshire,  who  had  nine 

children,    he  said  ;   "  I  was  sent  to  a  public  school  and  the 

Varsity,  and  chose  the  army  as  my  profession.      I  was  the 

eldest,  and  the  family  cheese-parings  were  great  to  give  me 

4* 


52  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

that  education  at  all  ;  but  I  never  stopped  to  think  about 
the  fact  then.  I  went  up  as  a  'Varsity  candidate  and  failed. 
My  father  was  very  much  distressed. 

"  '  Bob,'  he  told  me,  '  I  have  not  the  money  to  pay  for  you 
again  ;  but  if  you  promise  to  work  this  time,  my  boy,  and 
are  certain  to  get  through,  I  will  borrow  it,'  He  did  so. 
I  failed  again.  Poor  old  father  !  I  realise  now  what  the 
disappointment  must  have  been  to  him  ;  I  feel  all  the 
sorrow  and  sufferinQ-  mv  mother  must  have  endured  while 
they  were  paying  off  that  loan." 

He  was  a  fine  fellow,  and  I  honoured  him  for  the  tear 
which  he  wiped  away  as  he  chokingly  continued  : — 

"  Well,  I  had  thrown  away  my  chance  ;  I  had  played  the 
fool,  and  to  add  to  everything  else,  contracted  debts.  What 
was  I  to  do  ?  I,  who  had  misused  all  the  help  that  had 
been  given  me  ?  A  few  pounds  were  somehow  collected, 
and  I  was  shipped  off  to  Mexico,  I  had  no  profession, 
I  knew  nothing  practical,  nobody  wanted  me.  On  the 
verge  of  starvation  I  was  lucky  enough  to  get  a  berth  as  a 
cowboy,  and  here  I  am,  after  six  years,  earning  £12  a 
year,  and  with  very  little  prospect,  so  far  as  I  can  see,  of 
ever  doing  any  better.  There  is  no  future  in  it.  The 
excitement  is  all  gone  after  the  first  year.  My  associates 
are  illiterate — good  fellows  in  their  way — but  this  is  merely 
existence,  not  life, 

"  They  send  me  papers  from  home  ;  I  am  too  tired  even 
to  read  them.  When  the  day's  work  is  over  I  get  some- 
thing to  eat  and  tumble  into  my  blanket,  and  with  daylight 
I  have  to  be  up  and  out  again. 

"  Fool,  fool,  fool  that  I  was,"  he  exclaimed  almost 
passionately,  "  to  turn  aside  from  good  chances  at  home, 
where  I  was  surrounded  by  love,  refinement  and  learning, 
and  chuck  my  life  to  the  winds  as  I  have  done." 

Poor  fellow !  My  heart  ached  for  him,  and  yet  his  case 
is  only  one  of  hundreds  in  a  like  position. 


HORSE   ROUND-UP.  53 

Then,  again,  I  met  a  man  who  used  to  drink  hard  in  a 
London  office,  besides  doing  other  evil  things.  He  was 
shipped  off  to  Mexico. 

"  On  my  honour,"  said  he,  "  I  have  never  once  taken  a 
drop  too  much  since.  I  am  no  teetotaller,  that  seemed 
cowardly,  but  I'm  sober,  and  getting  on  well  in  conse- 
quence. My  folly  at  home  killed  my  mother  ;  I  realise  it 
all  now  it  is  too  late,  and  no  future  success  can  ever  make 
me  an  inwardly  happy  man.  The  world  may  smile,  may 
forgive  and  forget,  but  I  find  one  can  never  forget  one's 
own  sins." 

Poor  fellow.  The  iron  had  eaten  into  his  soul. 
Remorse  is  bitter,  but  he  was  doing  his  best,  and  the 
kindly  hand  of  time  may  help  him  to  be  happy  again  some 
day.  To  have  conquered  sin  is  finer  than  never  to  have 
met  temptation.      But  a  truce  to  moralizing  ! 

Writing  of  horses  and  a  round-up  reminds  me  of  a  funny 
little  incident  which  occurred  in  New  York.  I  had  not 
lono^  been  in  the  States,  and  was  in  Fifth  Avenue  one 
afternoon,  when  it  began  to  rain.  I  had  on  my  best  hat, 
and  was  carrying  no  umbrella.  Turning  into  the  doorway 
of  a  shop,  I  waited  some  minutes  for  a  cab,  there  being  no 
tramcars  in  that  particular  street — the  only  really  peaceful 
street  in  New  York,  where  life  is  spent  hanging  on  to  a 
strap ! 

No  cab  passed,  so  I  walked  up  to  the  counter  of  a  drug- 
gists, to  find,  to  my  surprise,  a  series  of  taps  and  other 
queer  arrangements  that  looked  like  American  drinks. 
Turning  to  the  young  man  behind  the  counter,  I  said  : — 
"  Do  you  think  I  could  get  a  hansom  cab  here  V 
"  No,  ma'am,"  he  rejoined  civilly  ;  "  but  I'll  mix  you  a 
'  Horse's  Neck,'  "  and  at  once  proceeded  to  do  so,  that 
being  the  latest  "  soft  drink." 

Are  drug  stores  prophetic  }     Iced  drinks  on  one   side, 
and  medicines  on  the  other!     The  term,    "soft  drink,"   for 


54  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

non-intoxiccints  is  as  quaint  as  that  expressive  : — "  Have  a 
smile  ?  "   meaning  a  drink  of  more  fiery  nature. 

It  was  at  a  ranche  that  I  first  experienced  a  Mexican 
"norther."  Nothing- in  the  world  is  more  horrible.  It  is 
"  awful,"  in  the  true  sense  of  that  often  misused  word. 
A  London  or  Chicago  fog  brings  despair  to  the  housewife 
when  it  arrives  just  before  a  dinner-party,  and  turns  her 
brightly  shining  silver  yellow ;  but  a  smoky  fog  is  a 
mere  bagatelle  when  compared  with  a  real  Mexican 
"  norther." 

It  had  been  very  hot  for  a  couple  of  days — between 
eighty  and  ninety  degrees  in  the  shade  in  November  ;  the 
air,  however,  was  heavily  laden  with  moisture,  like  a 
Turkish  bath.  Everyone,  therefore,  predicted  a  "  norther," 
and  everyone,  alas  !  was  right. 

First  the  wind  got  up — from  the  north,  of  course  ;  the 
air  grew  more  and  more  chilly,  until  it  swept  over  those 
vast  plains  of  Texas,  like  an  arctic  blast.  The  wind 
increased  in  force  as  the  atmosphere  became  colder.  All 
this  was  endurable — one  could  bear  a  terribly  cold  windy 
storm — but  the  wind  had  a  companion,  and  that  was  the 
dust.  Usually  a  ranche  is  all  dust ;  the  grass  is  in  plots 
and  patches,  between  which  lie  acres — thousands  and 
thousands  of  them — composed  of  sand  and  prickly  pears. 
Once  the  norther  sets  in,  all  the  dust  gets  loose,  and  whirls 
and  hurtles  about  in  a  storm  which  defies  description. 

It  was  my  fate,  alas!  to  drive  twelve  miles  in  such  a 
gale.  Under  other  circumstances,  we  could  easily  have 
accomplished  the  distance  in  three  hours,  but  we  took  four 
and  a  half  Gates  had  to  be  opened,  and  a  big  man  could 
only  with  difficulty  re-shut  them  ;  every  moment  it  seemed 
as  if  the  coach  must  be  blown  over.  Eyes,  nose,  mouth, 
ears,  were  choked  with  dust — hard,  sharp,  cutting,  sandy 
dust — and  by  the  time  we  reached  home,  my  raven  locks  were 
grey.      People  are  said  to  have  gone   white   in   one   night ; 


HORSE  ROUND-UP.  55 

I  accomplished  that  feat  in  a  few  hours.  Think  of  it ! 
Think  of  long  hair  and  sandy  grit — even  my  eyebrows  and 
eyelashes  were  white,  while  my  face  was  so  yellow  and 
begrimed,  that  I  hardly  recognised  myself  in  the  mirror 
from  which  I  had  to  remove  a  dusty  coating  before  I  could 
see  in  it  at  all. 

Those  dust-storms,  and  consequent  head  washings  in 
a  basin,  were  terribly  trying  to  the  temper,  and  I  always 
looked  forward  to  the  day  when  I  should  reach  Mexico 
City,  and  enjoy  the  delights  of  a  hairdresser's  douche.  It 
seems  impossible,  but  it  is  nevertheless  true,  that  up-to- 
date,  smart  and  fashionable  as  that  city  undoubtedly  is, 
there   is   no  lady's  coiffeur  from  end  to  end  of  the  town. 

On  arrival  I  asked  a  friend  where  I  could  find  one  ;  he 
promptly  replied  : 

"  There  is  not  such  a  thing.'' 

"  Then  what  on  earth  do  the  Mexican  ladies  do  ?  "  I 
enquired. 

"  I  think  they  have  their  hair  washed  at  home  by  their 
maids,"  answered  he. 

"  But  I  have  no  maid,  and  at  present  no  home  ;  what  is 
to  happen  to  me  ?  " 

He  finally  promised  to  find  someone,  and  accordingly 
the  following  day,  as  arranged,  "el  barbero  "  duly  arrived 
at  the  appointed  hour.  I  smiled  upon  him,  and  he  smiled 
upon  me,  and  we  proceeded  amicably  to  a  basin.  The 
conversation  was  necessarily  limited,  for  I  had  not  then 
been  long  in  Mexico,  and  Spanish  was  his  only  language. 
It  took  a  vast  amount  of  persuasion  to  get  the  gentleman 
to  rinse  my  hair  sufficiently,  in  spite  of  my  determined  cry 
of  "  Encore  ao-ua  !  " 

At  last  that  difficulty  was  got  over,  and  we  had  become 
quite  friendly  when  he  began  to  rub.  It  must  be  owned 
that  fine  hair  which  is  long  enough  to  sit  upon,  is  difficult 
to    wash    and    easy  to    tangle.      The    gentleman    did    not 


K 


56  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

succeed  in  drying  my  head  to  my  satisfaction,  but  in  spite 
of  many  efforts,  I  could  not  make  him  understand  At 
last  a  bright  idea  struck  me,  remembering  dry  champagne 
was  called  "  sec,"  I  might  try  the  word  upon  the  barber. 
Accordingly,  I  said  : 
"  Non  sec  !  " 

"  Si,  Senora,"  replied  he,  for  I  had  hit  the  right  nail  on 
the  head,  seco  being  the  Spanish  word,  so  there  was  some 
association  between  dry  champagne  and  my  hair. 

So  far  so  good,  but  when  the  time  came  for  him  to 
depart,  not  yet  feeling  quite  satisfied  about  my  tresses, 
which  were  scarcely  so  dry  as  I  thought  they  ought  to  be,  I 
kept  a  towel  over  my  shoulders,  put  a  chair  with  its  back 
to  the  balcony,  and  proceeded  to  sit  in  the  glorious  sun- 
shine, to  let  the  rays  of  that  warming  orb  penetrate  where 
the  towel  could  not.  The  barber  danced  about,  he  talked 
volubly,  I  only  shook  my  head,  for  I  could  not  understand. 
He  became  more  and  more  excited,  he  patted  me  on  the 
back,  explained  many  things  about  "sol"  and  "  sombra," 
but  I  could  only  imagine  the  man  had  gone  suddenly  mad, 
and  persistently  sat  drying  my  hair. 

At  last  he  departed.  About  a  quarter  of  an  hour  later, 
when  I  was  just  thinking  of  retiring  from  my  sunny  corner, 
a  knock  came  at  my  door. 

"  May  I  come  in  '■  "  queried  the  voice  of  the  friend  who 
had  sent  the  barber. 

"  I  will  try  and  be  ready  in  a  few  minutes,"  I  replied, 
"  but  my  hair  is  down." 

"  I  know  it  is,"  he  answered,  "  that  is  why  I  have  come." 
This  was  surprising,  but   before   I   had  time  to  say  any 
more  he  opened  the  door,  and  with  an  agonised  expression, 
exclaimed  : 

"  Please  get  out  of  the  sun  at  once." 

"  What  do  you  mean  ?  "  I  asked,  more  perplexed  than 
ever. 


HORSE   ROUND-UP.  57 

"  The  barber  came  round  to  my  office  and  told  me  you 
insisted  on  sitting  in  the  sun  with  a  damp  head,  that  no 
words  of  his  could  persuade  you  to  do  otherwise,  and  as  he 
was  sure  you  would  die  of  fever,  he  begged  me  to  come  and 
rescue  you  from  the  jaws  of  death  !  " 

This  idea  of  the  danger  of  exposing  a  wet  head  to  the 
sun's  rays,  universally  prevails  in  Mexico. 

Such  were  my  subsequent  experiences  :  meantime  I  tried 
to  pour  water  out  of  the  jug — out  came  a  yellow  fluid  ; 
the  water  was  entirely  coated  with  dust,  the  basin  was 
a  mass  of  sand,  the  toilet  table  was  quite  yellow,  and  as 
I  lifted  a  brush,  its  shape  remained  clearly  imprinted 
below.  The  sponge  was  full  of  grit — a  sort  of  sandy  grit 
that  hurt  ;  even  the  tooth-brush  had  not  escaped.  No 
words  can  describe  the  horrors  of  it  all.  A  "  norther  "  gets 
under  the  doors  and  through  the  cracks  of  the  windows, 
and  even  after  washing  and  tidying  up,  when  one  eventually 
goes  to  bed  weary  and  exhausted,  'tis  but  to  find  the  pillow 
and  sheets  all  full  of  sand. 

Fortunately,  these  "  northers  "  are  not  very  frequent,  but 
a  few  occur  each  winter,  when  nothing  escapes  their  touch, 
and  on  a  ranche,  with  miles  and  miles  of  sand  stretching  in 
every  direction,  they  are  enough  to  break  any  house- 
keeper's heart.  They  fill  her  kitchen,  her  pots,  her  sitting- 
room  and  her  ornaments  with  sand,  ruin  her  clothes,  and 
everything  she  most  values,  poor  soul  !  Only  washing 
materials  and  wickerwork  furniture  are  really  practical 
articles  for  wear,  anything  else  can  be  destroyed  by  a 
"norther  "  in  an  hour. 

That  experience,  repeated  later  in  varied  degrees,  was 
one  which  might  surely  be  numbered  with  black  fogs, 
mosquitoes  and  moths,  among  the  plagues  of  this  earth. 


58 


CHAPTER   IV 


LIFE    ON    A    PRIVATE    CAR. 


What  could  be  more  delightful,  after  eight  or  nine  nights 
spent  in  Pullman  railway  cars,  surrounded  by  snoring 
humanity,  than  to  be  invited  to  pass  a  few  days  in  a  private 
railway  coach  belonging  to  the  General  Manager  of  an 
important  line  ? 

A  room,  think  of  it,  actually  a  room,  and  all  to  myself! 
No  upper  and  lower  berths  turned  up  by  day,  or  pulled 
down  by  night,  no  conductors  or  darkie  porters  continually 
passing  in  and  out  ;  but  a  real  bedroom  to  myself  and  the 
run  of  a  whole  car !  Oh,  the  joy  of  those  private  cars,  in 
several  of  which  I  spent  many  happy  weeks  in  Mexico  ! 

Let  me  first  describe  my  chamber.  It  was  twelve  feet  by 
seven — as  big  as  a  ship's  cabin,  and  quite  as  convenient, 
with  far  more  height  and  much  more  air,  as  it  boasted  three 
nice  windows,  to  say  nothing  of  ventilators  in  the  roof 
There  was  a  double  bed,  with  splendid  springs  and  the 
downiest  of  pillows,  beneath  which  were  large  commodious 
drawers.  High  up  above  the  bed  was  a  shelf  a  foot  wide, 
on  which  many  things  could  be  stowed.  Then  there  was  a 
small  hanging  wardrobe  between  the  bed  and  the  door,  with 
a  large  mirror  set  into  its  frame.  Imagine  a  cheval  glass 
in  a  private  car  !  To  such  luxury  are  these  homes  on 
wheels  brought  nowadays ! 

A  wash-hand  stand,  with  dressing-table  attached  and 
drawers  underneath,  a  seat  and  an  armchair,  completed  the 


«»gKafes«*fe' 


A  private  car. 


^^ 


J 


S 


Jiarred  windows,  to  prevent  ihicvin 


[  To  fare  piige  58. 


LIFE    ON  A    PRIVATE   CAR.  59 

furniture  ;   yet  in  spite  of  this  splendour  there  was  room  to 
turn  round,  breathe  and  feel  a  veritable  Queen  ! 

The  car  itself  was  a  full-sized  Pullman  ;  at  one  end  was 
the  sitting-room,  containing  four  lovely  armchairs  covered 
in  pale  green  silk  brocade,  to  match  the  window-curtains, 
and  a  couple  of  sofas  that  could  be  made  into  beds  when 
necessary,  a  writing-table,  several  shelves,  while  all  the  back 
was  glass  to  form  what  is  called  an  "observation  car,"  with 
a  balcony  beyond,  and  as  a  private  car  is  always  at  the  rear 
ot  a  train,  the  view  of  the  country  was  magnificent. 

Beyond  this  drawing-room,  a  couple  of  bed-rooms  (similar 
to  that  previously  described),  and  a  lavatory  opened  off  the 
passage  ;  then  came  the  kitchen,  where  a  darkie  cook 
concocted  most  delicious  dishes,  while,  at  the  end  of  the 
corridor,  was  the  dining-room.  What  more  could  mortal 
man  wish  for  than  to  spend  a  short  time  in  such  a  car, 
being  shunted  at  desirable  spots,  and  while  leaving  it  by 
day,  feeling  it  was  always  waiting  to  offer  a  home  at  night, 
one  in  which  packing  and  unpacking  were  consequently  un- 
necessary }  Only  those  who  have  travelled  some  thousand 
miles  in  a  few  weeks,  with  constant  stoppages,  hotels  and 
Pullman  "  sleepers,"  can  realise  the  blissfulness  of  life  on  a 
private  car. 

Many  rich  people  who  travel  about  a  good  deal  have 
their  private  car,  which,  at  a  cost  of  from  fifteen  to  twenty 
first-class  tickets,  can  be  hooked  on  to  any  train.  If  there 
be  a  party  of  half-a-dozen,  the  expense  is  not  as  great  as 
would  at  first  appear. 

The  hotels  in  Mexico  are  so  bad  as  a  rule,  that  the  nicest 
way  to  travel  about  is  in  a  private  car.  This  saves  hotel 
bills,  endless  'buses  and  cabs  for  luggage,  as  well  as  that 
constant  packing  and  unpacking  which  wearies  the  soul  and 
sorely  tries  the  temper  of  the  "  best-regulated  "  traveller. 

Fifteen  first-class  tickets  must  be  taken  in  order  to  hire 
a  car.       Suppose  the  tickets  be  from  the  frontier  to  Mexico 


6o  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

City  ;  that  car,  if  so  desired,  may  dally  for  weeks  on  the 
way  ;  the  fifteen  tickets  allow  that,  and  the  hire  is  fifty 
dollars  (Mexican)  a  day.  Now  if  there  be  six  or  eight 
people  in  the  party  it  will  be  readily  seen  that  the  rent  with 
extra  tickets  is  not  very  dissimilar  to  the  hotel  charges. 
A  cook  and  porter  accompany  the  car,  and  arrangements 
can  be  made  by  which  the  former  undertakes  to  feed  the 
party  at  so  much  per  head.  The  darkies  cook,  wait,  and 
discharge  all  their  duties  surprisingly  well. 

Two  or  three  months  can  be  spent  most  happily  in  Mexico 
in  this  manner,  an  occasional  trip  away  from  the  car  for  a 
night  or  two  into  the  wilder  regions  is  all  that  is  necessary. 
By  this  luxurious  means  the  traveller  takes  his  house  along 
with  him. 

Monterey  is  one  of  the  chief  business  towns  of  Mexico. 
It  is  situated  in  the  north,  where  American  and  Encrlish 
influence  is  much  felt.  Still  in  spite  of  chimneys  and  manu- 
factories it  remains  a  strangely  primitive  place.  Flat- 
roofed  houses  remind  one  of  the  East  ;  yellow,  blue,  pink, 
or  white-washed  walls  with  o-reen  shutters  announce  a 
sultry  clime  ;  a  splendid  palm,  mimosa,  castor-oil  or  banana 
tree  whispers  that  one  is  nearing  the  tropics,  and  behind 
the  town  stands  a  fine  range  of  hills. 

The  better  houses  have  iron  bars  before  the  windows  ;  this 
is  to  prevent  stealing,  for  the  windows  are  kept  constantly 
open. 

An  English  resident  told  me  one  night,  when  asleep,  he 
dreamed  a  dream,  and  in  that  dream  he  thought  his  bed- 
clothes were  slipping  away.  Suddenly  something  seemed 
to  jerk,  and  he  woke  in  a  fright  to  find  his  sheets  and 
blankets  disappearing  between  the  iron  bars  of  his  window  ! 
Even  iron  bars  won't  stop  Mexican  thieves,  who  have  a  clever 
way  of  fixing  a  hook  at  the  end  of  a  pole,  and  so  manage  to 
confiscate  odds  and  ends  on  which  they  have  set  their  hearts. 

The  roads  of  Monterey  are  paved  with  red   bricks  ;  but 


LIFE    ON  A   PRIVATE    CAR.  6i 

these  bricks  are  cemented  together,  and  not  loose,  as  in  the 
quaint  little  island  of  Borkum,  in  the  North  Sea — the  only 
other  place  where  I  have  seen  brick  roads,  and  the  one 
spot  on  earth  from  which  Jews  are  banished. 

I  noticed  several  queer  stone  rings  on  my  way  from 
the  station,  and  on  asking  what  they  were,  the  railway 
official  who  kindly  acted  as  my  guide  replied  : — "  They  are 
wells.  People  make  a  well  first,  and  if  they  strike  water 
proceed  to  build  up  their  house." 

This  is  sound  wisdom,  no  doubt,  nevertheless  half-a- 
dozen  wells  look  rather  strangle  to  the  uninitiated. 

It  was  a  cold  morninof  as  we  drove  from  the  station,  and 
all  the  natives  were  wrapped  in  their  blankets.  How 
picturesque  they  looked,  with  their  big  hats  and  flowing 
coverings  of  every  shade  and  hue  !  Like  vultures  they 
stormed  the  railway  carriage,  touting  for  everything  under 
the  sun,  and  all  of  them  talking  at  once. 

Tram-cars,  drawn  by  a  couple  of  sad-looking  mules, 
had  taken  the  place  of  the  swift  electric  trams  of  the 
North,  and  the  natural  indolence  of  a  Southern  people  was 
noticeable  after  the  bustle  of  Chicago  or  New  York. 

At  Monterey  I  saw  the  Guggenheim  smelting  works, 
one  of  half-a-dozen  large  smelters  at  present  in  regular 
work.  Mr.  William  Guggenheim,  a  delightful  American, 
told  me  they  employ  a  couple  of  thousand  men  to  extract 
the  lead  and  silver  from  the  ore.  Monterey  promises  here- 
after to  be  the  great  business  centre  of  Mexico,  and  judging 
from  the  numbers  of  Americans,  English  and  Germans 
already  settled  in  the  place — which  boasts  73,000  inhabitants 
— it  is  almost  as  cosmopolitan  as  Chicago,  to  which  pros- 
perous town  Mexicans  ambitiously  liken  it. 

Speaking  of  Chicago  how  easily  things  can  be  misunder- 
stood !  I  was  staying  in  that  city  some  weeks  previously, 
and  wishing  to  send  a  wire  to  London,  telephoned  to  an 
old  friend  at  the  Calumet  Club  asking  him  what  time  the 


62  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

message  would  arrive  in  London,  as  I  did  not  want  it  to  be 
delivered  in  the  middle  of  the  night. 

"If  I  send  it  about  eleven  o'clock,  before  going  to 
bed,  it  will  arrive  in  the  morning,"  he  replied, 

"Very  well,  please  write  it  down,  'Joachim,  Sand- 
ringham  Club,  London.      Accept.'  " 

"  What  }  "  was  called  through  the  telephone. 

"  'Joachim,  Sandringham  Club,  London.  Accept,'  "  I 
repeated. 

"  Shall  I  sign  it  Tweedie  ? "  he  enquired. 

"  Oh  no,  that  will  be  all  right,"  I  answered. 

"  Well,  I  never,  you  accept  a  chap  by  wire,  and  don't 
even  sign  it !  " 

This  was  too  much,  the  absurdity  of  the  thing  flashed 
across  my  mind.  He  thought  I  was  accepting  a  pro- 
posal of  marriage,  while  it  was  merely  a  wire  to  Miss 
Eugenie  Joachim,  the  niece  of  the  famous  violinist,  to 
say  my  name  could  be  added  to  the  programme  for  his 
London  Concerts  in  1901  ! 

From  such  trifles  grave  mistakes  occur. 

In  Monterey,  there  are  good  houses  and  fine  buildings, 
almost  side  by  side  with  the  most  terrible  native  huts.  The 
men  working  in  some  of  the  large  factories  live  in  hovels 
built  of  bamboo  reeds,  which  are  often  so  small  and  low 
that  a  man  cannot  stand  upright  in  his  own  home.  They 
look  like  gipsy  tents,  and  yet  the  tenants  are  content  to 
live  in  them  year  after  year.  A  thatch  of  palm  leaves  lets 
in  the  rain,  bamboo  walls  admit  the  wind,  and  the  floor  is 
mother  earth.  If  a  man  possess  a  pig  he  is  considered 
wealthy,  and  that  pig  shares  his  home.  If  he  have  a  bed 
he  is  much  to  be  envied,  for  old  sacks  thrown  on  the  bare 
ground  form  the  Indian's  usual  couch.  In  the  middle  of 
the  hut — which  proljably  measures  twelve  feet  by  eight — is 
his  cooking-stove,  made  by  placing  two  or  three  bricks  on 
the  ground,  and  the  smoke  issuing  therefrom  finds  its  way 


LIFE    ON  A    PRIVATE   CAR.  63 

out   between  the  palm    leaves,   which  in  the  same  manner 
let  the  rain  in. 

The  family  possessions  consist  01  a  square  tin  can — which 
originally  held  oil — and  is  universally  used  for  hot  water,  or 
for  washing  the  clothes  of  the  family  or  even  for  cookino-  in 
a  large  way.  There  is  always  a  stone  trough  on  four  legs 
— metate — so  named  from  the  lava  rock  of  which  it  is 
made,  and  this  is  used  for  grinding  the  Indian  corn  which 
the  housewife  makes  into  tortillas.  She  sits  on  her  heels 
in  true  native  fashion,  and  rubs  a  small  roller  up  and  down 
until  she  has  ground  the  corn.  This,  with  water,  she 
makes  into  dough,  takes  a  small  quantity  in  her  hand,  pats 
it  out  flat  until  it  is  the  size  of  a  plate  and  very  thin, 
then  she  puts  it  into  an  iron  pan  and  bakes  it  over  the  fire, 
thus  preparing  the  staple  food  of  the  family.  A  brown 
bean  known  as  frijoles  is  also  largely  used.  Two  or  three 
artistic-looking  pottery  jars  complete  the  list  of  worldly 
goods,  and  thus  one  can  see  that  these  people  are  literally 
so  poor  that  they  could  not  possibly  be  poorer  and  yet  keep 
body  and  soul  together.  Their  little  straw  huts  may  be 
covered  with  lovely  purple  convolvulus,  known  as  "  mornino- 
glory,"  and  a  cat  or  a  hen  may  bring  gaiety  or  an  occasional 
^g%  to  their  home. 

They  cannot  read  or  write,  they  do  not  know  how  to 
think  ;  all  they  want  is  food  and  shelter,  and  so  their 
animal  existence  continues  year  in,  year  out.  Bjornson,  the 
great  Norwegian  writer,  says  that  an  agricultural  labourer  is 
happier  with  his  spade  than  the  literary  man  with  his  pen. 
If  this  be  true,  and  mere  animal  existence  a  joy,  the  native 
Mexican  has  surely  reached  Elysium  ! 

Scarcity  of  labour  is  one  of  the  crying  evils  of  Mexico. 
The  country  is  sparsely  populated,  only  about  fifteen  millions, 
and  although  prolific  (eight  is  quite  a  usual  number  of  child- 
ren to  be  born  in  a  family),  more  than  half  of  them  die  in 
mfancy.      Tortillas   and  pulque  are  hardly  proper  food  and 


64  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

drink  for  a  baby,  yet  on  such  diet  are  they  nourished  by 
their  ignorant  parents,  the  resulting  infant  mortality  being 
appalling.  Medical  men  in  Mexico  will  have  to  enforce 
more  attention  to  the  laws  of  health,  food  and  sanitation. 
It  is  not  want  of  proper  medicine  or  surgery,  it  is  ignorance 
of  nature's  teaching  that  produces  this  enormous  death-rate 
amono-  native  children. 

Another  cause  of  dearth  of  labour  is  that  the  Mexican 
Indian  has  no  ambition.  There  is  a  hopeless  apathy  about 
him.  He  never  thinks  of  saving  money;  he  sees  no  comfort 
in  independence,  cares  for  nothing  higher  than  the  position 
and  circumstances  in  which  he  was  born.  Some  few  men 
have  risen  to  position  and  wealth  ;  but  even  their  example 
does  not  inspire  the  multitude.  Mexicans  are  able  to  live 
on  little.  A  large  employer  of  labour  told  me  that  his 
greatest  difficulty  was  to  get  the  men  to  work  conseczttively. 
To  encourage  this  he  pays  higher  wages  to  those  men  who 
will  work  twenty  days  in  a  month,  but,  even  with  this 
inducement,  the  majority  prefer  idleness  ;  not  more  than 
seven  per  cent,  avail  themselves  of  his  offer.  Many 
employers  of  labour  testify  that,  as  a  rule,  they  gain  nothing 
by  advancing  the  rate  of  wages,  because  the  generality  of 
men  will  only  work  long  enough  in  any  one  week  to  secure 
sufficient  for  their  pressing  needs  during  that  particular 
week.  They  never  think  of  the  future,  so  long  as  they  have 
a  few  cents  in  their  pockets,  and  will  loll  about  or  gamble  at 
the  roulette  tables  until  that  small  sum  is  exhausted. 

Thus  one  sees  that  scarcity  of  labour,  briefly  stated, 
arises  from — 

(i.)  The  want  of  population. 
(2.)   Lack  of  ambition. 

So  enormously  have  the  industries  of  Mexico  increased 
since  the  introduction  of  railways,  that  the  population  cannot 
supply  sufficient  labour.  This  does  not  mean  that  it  would 
be  of  any  use  for  an  Englishman  to  imagine  a  field  of  action 


LIFE   ON  A    PRIVATE   CAR.  65 

is  waiting  for  liim,  for  he  could  not  live  on  the  wages  given, 
except  for  skilled  labour,  and  that  finds  a  market  in  almost 
all  lands  ;  but  it  does  mean  that  outside  work  has  to  be 
procured,  and  from  China  and  Japan  comes  the  supply. 
The  Chinese  are  no  longer  allowed  to  settle  in  the  United 
States  ;  but  they  may  go  into  Mexico,  for  which  purpose 
they  come  through  America  "  in  bond"  ;  i.e.,  they  are  put 
into  cars  in  San  Francisco,  a  Government  Official  travels 
with  them,  and  are  only  let  loose  when  they  reach  Mexican 
soil.  Every  fortnight  or  so  a  coach  laden  with  fifty  or  a 
hundred  of  these  Chinese  passes  through  the  States  ;  the 
door  is  kept  locked  during  the  whole  journey.  These 
emigrants  are  chiefly  employed  at  the  mines,  where  there 
are  whole  settlements  of  them. 

It  is  these  mines  which  promise  so  great  a  future  for 
Mexico. 

It  was  on  a  fine  November  day  in  1900,  that  Mr.  Lorenzo 
Johnson,  General  Manager  of  the  International  Railway, 
picked  me  up  in  his  private  coach,  the  "  Sabinas."  My 
introduction  to  him  came  from  Colonel  Aldace  Walker, 
Chairman  of  the  Atcheson,  Topeka,  Sante  Fe  Railway,  one 
of  the  most  delightful  friends  I  have  in  America.  Alas  !  I 
should  rather  say,  "had,"  for  Colonel  Walker  died  suddenly 
only  a  few  days  after  I  sailed  for  England.  My  last  Sunday 
in  New  York  was  spent  with  him  and  his  family. 

The  day  was  an  eventful  one,  for  it  chanced  to  be  the 
inauguration  of  General  Porfirio  Diaz,  as  President  of  the 
Mexican  Republic  for  the  sixth  time,  and  was  consequently 
kept  as  a  holiday,  and  day  of  rejoicing. 

Electing  a  President  seems  a  very  different  affair  in 
Mexico  from  what  it  is  in  the  United  States.  In  the 
latter  country  I  witnessed  the  frenzied  excitement  over  the 
re-election  of  McKinley  (October,  1900),  when  over  one 
hundred  thousand  of  the  most  respected  citizens  of  New 
York  formed    themselves  into   a  procession,   and    marched 

5 


66  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

through  the  city.  In  order  to  show  the  country  that  the 
wealth  of  America  was  ready  to  support  McKinley  against 
the  democratic  oratory  and  socialistic  tendencies  of  Bryan 
and  his  party,  this  body — calling  themselves  the  "  sound 
money  men  " — turned  out  in  force.  They  were  really  the 
Conservative  party  of  America,  if  anyone  dare  apply  such 
a  term  to  men  born  in  a  Republic  ! 

For  five  miles,  in  pouring  rain,  from  early  morning  till 
late  in  the  evening,  that  marvellous  procession  toiled  along 
Broadway.  It  was,  indeed,  a  strange  sight  to  see  these 
elderly  millionaires,  umbrella  in  hand,  wading  through  mud 
and  mire,  each  waving  his  flag  on  high  to  show  his  support 
of  McKinley,  the  man  under  whose  sway  America  has 
advanced  so  enormously.  What  a  wonderful  country  it  is ! 
With  the  yells  of  a  Chicago  mob  still  in  my  ears,  uttered 
when  the  news  of  McKinley's  re-election  was  known,  the 
lack  of  interest  in  Mexico  over  an  election  struck  me  as  par- 
ticularly strange.  The  fundamental  laws  of  the  country 
provide  universal  suffrage,  it  is  true  ;  but  it  has  never  been 
exercised,  and  the  President  is  re-elected  by  his  political 
following.  The  ordinary  rancheros  and  cowboys  know 
nothing  about  the  election  until  they  hear  it  is  over,  when 
they  just  nod  and  say  nothing.  As  far  as  they  personally 
are  concerned,  it  appears  of  no  consequence  whatever. 

The  President,  General  Diaz,  is  a  great  Dictator,  who 
began  his  career  as  a  revolutionist.  The  day,  however,  on 
which  this  marvellous  potentate — the  greatest  and  wisest 
despot  of  modern  times,  whose  acquaintance  I  was  for- 
tunate enough  to  make  later — takes  his  vote  of  office,  all  the 
folk  in  every  town  make  merry.  In  Monterey,  where  I 
chanced  to  be,  there  was  a  sham  fight,  and  a  very  in- 
teresting fight  it  proved. 

My  host,  Mr.  Johnson,  fetched  me  from  the  hotel,  where 
a  brick  floor,  many  panes  of  glass  missing  from  the  window, 
and  no  latch  whatever  on  the  door,  had  not  impressed  me 


f2 


LIFE   ON  A    PRIVATE   CAR.  67 

with  the  comfort  of  Mexican  hotels  in  general.  Little  did 
I  guess  when  I  started  in  the  "  Sabinas  "  of  all  the  wonders 
in  store  for  me,  the  endless  private  cars,  special  trains  or 
steamboats  that  were  to  be  my  lot.  In  my  wildest  dreams 
I  could  not  have  hoped  that  the  President  of  Mexico  would 
prove  such  a  friend,  that  Governors  of  States  would  enter- 
tain me  so  royally,  or  that  troops  of  soldiers  would  escort 
me  through  the  mountains,  yet  all  these  marvellous  thino-s 
happened !  * 

After  driving  to  the  station  yard  where  the  car  stood 
awaitmg  our  arrival,  we  sallied  forth  to  see  the  soldiers 
assembled  close  by.  There  was  nowhere  to  sit,  and  as 
standmg  is  tiring,  I  ventured  to  suggest  that  we  should  get 
on  the  roof  of  one  of  the  covered-in  "  box  "  cars,  standing 
close  at  hand.  My  companion  smiled  at  the  idea,  and 
remarked  that  the  only  way  up  was  by  means  of  the  iron 
steps  fixed  in  the  side,  which  the  railway  men  use. 

"  I'll  try,"  I  replied,  and  accordingly  we  climbed  to  the 
top  of  a  freight  car  of  the  International  Railway,  where  a 
splendid  view  of  the  sham  fight  rewarded  us  for  our  pains 

In  front,  on  an  open  space  of  ground,  both  infantry  and 
cavalry  were  assembled  ;  the  men  were  small  in  size,  though 
tidy  in  appearance  ;  but  they  seemed  to  know  their  work 
well,  and  the  charge  of  the  cavalry  was  particularly  excitin- 

Soldiers  in  Mexico  are  recruited  from  the  prisons.  It  ts 
a  curious  arrangement,  but  a  fact  nevertheless.  Those 
gaol-birds  make  good  soldiers,  and  being  under  supervision 
are  unable  to  get  into  further  mischief,  while  being  utilised 
to  serve  their  country. 

The  grim  old  chain  of  mountains  must  have  smiled  at 
this  sham  fight,  if  it  remembered  the  valiant  and  bloody 
deeds  of  1846,  when  Mexican  troops,  posted  along  the  low 
ridge  overlooking  the  valley,  were  assailed  by  the  American 
army  from  the  plains  below,  and  utterly  routed.* 

*  See  General  Howard's  "  Campaign  of  General  Taylor." 


5* 


68  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

After  a  delightful  little  dinner  we  set  sail — no,  that  term 
will  hardly  do,  despite  the  American  cry,  "  all  aboard  " — 
so  we  will  merely  say  that  after  being  "  switched  on  "  to  the 
nio-ht  train  bound  for  Durang^o — some  four  hundred  miles 
distant,  with  a  rise  of  nearly  five  thousand  feet — away  we 
went. 

For  the  first  time  in  my  experience  of  railway  cars,  I 
managed  to  sleep  fairly  well,  although  the  stoppages  in- 
variably woke  me  with  a  jerk,  reminding  me — despite  my 
private  room  and  capacious  bed — that  I  was  still  on  the 
track  ! 

About  breakfast-time  we  reached  Torreon,  where  the 
International  and  Mexican  Central  Lines  intersect.  Tor- 
reon is  not  famous  for  anything  in  particular,  but  since  the 
advent  of  the  railroad,  it  is  growing  at  wonderful  speed  into 
a  commercial  and  manufacturing  town.  It  was  Sunday, 
and  though  still  early,  about  two  hundred  and  fifty  idlers  in 
bright-coloured  blankets  were  loitering  about.  Chinese 
with  their  pigtails  were  "en  evidence,"  and  the  general 
"  dolce  far  niente "  air  of  a  southern  clime  prevailed. 
What  gay  colouring,  what  an  Oriental  scene !  The 
women  were  carrying  pitchers  on  their  heads,  the  men 
large  baskets  of  fruit.  Each  man  had  a  little  trestle  in 
his  hand,  and  before  a  probable  customer  he  fixed  his 
table,  and  dexterously  lifting  the  large  basket  from  his 
head,  placed  it  thereon.  Here  were  vendors  of  hats  and 
baskets,  besides  people  whose  chief  excitement  in  life  is  to 
hang  about  a  railway  station.  It  is  a  "  rendez-vous  "  just 
as  the  hall  of  a  large  American  hotel  is  used  as  a  business 
meeting  place,  much  to  the  amazement  of  a  Britisher,  who 
on  first  entering  to  engage  a  room  finds  dozens  and  dozens 
of  men  all  standing  about  and  talking  loudly. 

The  crowds  at  Torreon  surprised  me,  but  I  found  they 
were  an  ordinary  occurrence  at  every  station  in  Mexico. 
In  most   towns  there  is  only  one  daily  passenger  train  in 


Native  adol:)e  house,  without  windows. 


A  Mexican  market. 


To  face  page  69.  ] 


LIFE    ON  A    PRIVATE   CAR.  69 

and  out,  and  the  inhabitants  flock  eagerly  to  see  that  train 
come  in,  just  as  folk  at  Dover  or  Calais  turn  out  on  a 
rough  day  to  witness  the  arrival  of  the  poor  sea-sick 
passengers.  The  peons  will  idle  about  for  hours,  waiting 
for  the  train  if  it  happen  to  be  late.  A  smoke,  a  chat,  and 
a  loll  at  the  station,  are  "  a  la  mode  "  in  Mexico. 

Blind  musicians  appear  at  every  station.  Either  there 
must  be  an  exceptionally  large  number  of  blind  folk  in 
Mexico,  or  else  all  who  are  thus  afflicted  make  a  point  of 
appearing  on  the  station  platforms,  where  they  warble  to 
the  accompaniment  of  violin,  guitar  or  mandoline,  the 
instrument  being  often  home-made. 

Indians  are  certainly  musical.  It  is,  of  course,  their  own 
native  music  they  love — sad  and  doleful,  as  most  native 
music  is  wont  to  be  ;  but  they  will  sing  and  play  for  hours 
on  the  slightest  provocation. 

Torreon  was  far  more  Mexican  than  Monterey  ;  the 
foreign  element  which  has  crept  into  the  latter  town,  was 
hardly  noticeable  at  all,  though  many  modern  houses  of 
brick  and  stone,  two  floors  hieh,  have  been  erected  since 
the  introduction  of  the  railway.  The  houses,  however, 
are  mostly  one  storey  with  no  window  to  the  street,  only 
large  wooden  doors,  which  when  opened  admit  light. 
This  arrangement  is  universal  in  Mexico  ;  the  smaller 
houses  never  have  windows,  and  the  door  is  the  only 
available  opening.  It  was  extraordinary  to  notice  among 
the  poorer  people  the  systematic  avoidance  of  light  and  air. 
The  door  admits  both,  in  a  minor  degree,  but  at  night, 
when  that  aperture  is  shut,  neither  can  enter.  This  led 
me  to  remark  another  thing.  The  Mexican  Indian  simply 
shrivels  up  in  the  cold  ;  he  is  always  poorly  clad,  and  once 
the  temperature  falls  he  falls  with  it,  and  instead  of  bustling 
about  to  try  and  get  warm,  he  simply  sits  down  and  shivers. 
A  "  norther  "  absolutely  paralyzes  him,  not  because  of  the 
dust   which  strikes   horror  to  any   creature   accustomed  to 


70  MEXICO  AS  I  SAW  IT. 

cleanliness,  but  on  account  of  the  sharp  cutting  wind  which 
accompanies  it.  His  dark  skin  seems  literally  to  turn 
pale ;  he  refuses  to  work — indeed,  he  cannot,  for  cold 
petrifies  him. 

What  a  surprise  the  railway  development  of  the  last  few 
years  must  have  been  to  the  native !  The  Mexican  Cen- 
tral runs  over  2,192  miles  of  country,  and  the  Mexican 
National  1,120,  besides  which  there  are  several  other  lines 
of  considerable  lencjth.  At  first  the  native  exhibited  fear 
when  he  saw  an  engine,  then  stood  open-mouthed,  and 
finally  availed  himself  of  the  train,  as  the  numerous  pas- 
sengers in  the  third-class  carriages  prove. 

There  are  curious  laws  in  some  countries  in  connection 
with  railway  affairs.  One  of  the  odd  features  of  railway 
operations  in  Mexico  is  that  train  officials  are  promptly 
arrested  and  imprisoned  in  cases  of  personal  injury  to  any- 
one on  the  track,  even  when  their  innocence  of  blame  is 
apparent !  The  stupidity  of  the  native,  however,  is  appall- 
ing !  Not  only  will  he  walk  along  the  station  track — which 
has  no  platform — he  will  lie  under  the  cars  for  shade 
and  so  universal  is  this  habit,  and  so  many  heads  have 
consequently  been  chopped  off,  that  the  railway  officials 
have  actually  to  search  the  sidings  and  rout  out  these 
people  before  the  cars  can  be  started  ! 

Humboldt,  when  he  visited  Mexico,  said  it  would  be 
possible  to  lay  railroads  all  over  the  country,  and  extra- 
ordinary as  the  idea  then  seemed  in  so  mountainous  a 
land,  his  prophecy  is  being  fulfilled.  The  average  speed, 
including  stoppages,  is  about  thirty  miles  an  hour,  which  is 
wonderful  when  one  remembers  the  high  grades  often 
passed  over  at  such  places  as  the  approach  to  Zacatecas, 
the  descent  from  Esperanza  to  Orizaba,  or  from  San  Luis 
Potosi  to  Pascon,  on  the  Tampico  division  of  the  Central 
Railway,  or  from  Puebla  to  Oaxaca,  each  of  which  has  a 
four  per  cent,  grade.     On  the  other  hand  it  must  be  remem- 


LIFE   ON  A    PRIVATE   CAR.  71 

bered  that  miles  and  miles  and  hundreds  of  miles  of  rail 
in  Mexico  run  through  perfectly  flat  valleys,  where  the 
expenses  of  building,  maintaining  and  working  are  com- 
paratively small. 

It  is  strange  in  such  a  mountainous  land  to  find  so  many 
perfectly  flat  valleys.  One  is  led  to  suppose,  especially 
from  the  sandiness  of  the  soil,  that  millions  of  years  ago 
they  were  vast  inland  seas.  At  any  rate,  these  flat  valleys 
have  proved  of  enormous  service  in  making  railways,  for 
sometimes  twenty  or  thirty  miles  of  perfectly  straight  track 
without  any  grade  is  found.  When  the  line  has  to  cross 
the  mountains,  and  rise  ten  thousand  feet,  as  it  often  does, 
the  engineering  displayed  is  amazing. 

I  said  on  a  former  page  that  one  of  the  great  wants  of 
Mexico  was  labour  ;  another  great  want — in  the  north  at 
least — is  water.  This  does  not  mean  that  there  is  no  water, 
on  the  contrary,  there  is  plenty  in  the  wrong  place — rivers 
and  lakes  are  numerous  ;  but  there  are  also  vast  areas 
where  neither  lake  nor  river  is  to  be  found  ;  therefore  when 
the  heavy  rains  come  from  May  to  October,  they  are 
usually  wasted,  for  lack  of  storage.  Without  water  there 
can  be  no  life.  The  subject  of  irrigation  is,  however,  at 
present  much  to  the  fore,  and  a  great  deal  is  now  being 
done  to  supply  this  much-needed  commodity,  especially  in 
Southern  Mexico.  If  well  irrigated  much  of  the  waste 
desert  land  of  Northern  Mexico  could  be  made  profitable. 
The  railways  are  there  ;  but  enterprise  to  thoroughly  irrigate 
the  land,  and  turn  it  to  agricultural  account,  is  still  lacking. 

With  labour,  water  and  fuel,  Mexico  would  soon  become 
a  veritable  paradise. 


72 


CHAPTER    V. 

A    PEEP     AT    A    COCK-FIGHT. 

A  COCK-FIGHT,  termed  Los  Gallos,  is  a  very  favourite 
amusement.  Barely  thirty  years  since  we  had  cock-fights 
in  England,  although  they  were  actually  forbidden  by  Act 
of  Parliament  in  1849.  They  could  never  have  been  so 
picturesque  as  one  of  these  entertainments  in  Mexico, 
where  every  hat  or  blanket  of  the  spectators  has  its 
especial  colour  and  its  charm. 

On  Sunday  morning  the  cock-fights  begin  ;  then  there 
is  a  pause  for  dinner  and  the  usual  siesta — every  man, 
woman  and  child  sleeps  in  Mexico  from  one  to  three — and 
about  four  o'clock  the  fray  recommences.  On  driving  up 
to  the  cock-pit  a  curious  spectacle  met  our  eyes.  In  the 
centre  of  an  open  space  was  an  arena,  probably  a  little 
more  than  eight  yards  in  diameter,  fenced  in  by  a  hoarding 
some  three  feet  high.  Round  this  circus-like  arrangement 
were  tiers  and  tiers  of  seats,  occupied  by  about  a  couple 
of  hundred  men.  Nearly  all  of  them  wore  the  enormous 
Mexican  hat  of  straw  or  felt,  and  the  majority  sported  a 
bright  blanket  as  the  day  was  chilly.  Overhead — to  keep 
off  the  expected  sun  —  a  sheet  was  hung,  which  gave  a 
certain  shadow  to  the  scene  and  made  the  snap-shots 
failures. 

We  climbed  up  a  ladder-like  stair,  and  three  rough- 
looking    Mexican    Indians,  with   innate  politeness,   vacated 


A    PEEP  AT  A    COCK-FIGHT.  73 

their   seats,  being   evidently  entertained  at  the  advent  ot 
an  Englishwoman. 

The  cock-fight  in  Durango  was  a  strange  and  interesting 
sight.  Below,  in  the  arena,  were  twenty- eight  men  with  as 
many  cocks.  Now  a  good  cock,  be  it  understood,  is  an 
expensive  luxury,  for  while  an  ordinary  one  will  cost  about 
12  dollars,  a  really  good  game  cock  of  weight,  breed, 
and  comes  of  a  strain  of  fighters,  will  fetch  50  dollars 
(Mexican),  or  ^5  in  English  money.  Many  of  the  best 
cocks  are  imported  from  the  United  States,  but  when  bred 
in  Mexico,  Japanese  hens  are  generally  used. 

Some  of  the  birds  in  the  arena  were  beautiful  ;  of 
various  sorts  and  kinds,  several  game,  birds  being  among 
them  ;  but  they  all  seemed  to  be  large  and  in  fine  plumage. 
Each  bird  had  a  leather  cuff  round  his  foot,  to  which  he 
was  secured  by  a  string.  Some  of  the  cocks  were  standing 
about,  all  crowed  cheerily  in  turn,  while  their  owners 
caressed  and  stroked  them.  At  one  end  of  the  ring  a  sort 
of  major-domo  sat  with  a  box  before  him  ;  he  was  apparently 
the  umpire,  and  had  something  to  do  with  the  betting, 
which  soon  became  fast  and  furious,  the  sums  staked 
varying  from   25   cents  to    100  dollars. 

After  a  great  deal  of  talk  and  general  fuss,  the  ring 
was  cleared.  The  cocks  were  taken  to  the  side  to  be 
weighed,  just  as  jockeys  are  weighed-in  before  a  race. 
Only  two  men  remained,  a  gentlemanly-looking  person 
with  his  cock  under  his  arm,  and  a  regular  old  beggar — 
judging  by  his  appearance — also  with  his  bird.  Then  the 
mysterious  case  in  front  of  the  umpire  was  opened,  and  lo, 
it  contained  the  implements  of  war.  In  rows  inside  the 
case  were  thin,  cruel-looking  knives,  with  an  upward  bend, 
almost  like  a  scythe.  They  were  four  or  five  inches  long, 
and  very  sharp  in  the  blade.  Each  man  had  chosen  his 
spur  or  knife,  its  length  varying  according  to  the  weight 
of  the  cock,  and  he  now  proceeded  to  attach  it  to  his  bird's 


74  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

foot.  Apparently  they  adjusted  a  leather  band  round  the 
right  foot  into  which  the  end  of  the  blade  was  stuck.  They 
then  proceeded  to  bind  the  blade  most  securely  to  the 
back  claw  with  string. 

Having  arranged  this  horrible  weapon  to  their  satisfac- 
tion, they  put  a  leather  shield  over  to  protect  it  till  the 
right  moment  arrived  ;  the  spur  was  fixed  to  the  right  foot, 
and  curved  upwards.  At  a  given  signal  the  shield  was 
removed,  the  President  of  the  ring  stepped  into  the  middle 
of  the  arena,  and  drew  three  lines  with  his  stick  in  the 
sand.  At  either  side  a  man  immediately  crouched  with  his 
cock,  sitting  usual  native  fashion  on  his  heels.  He  held 
his  bird  till  its  head  was  almost  up  to  the  middle  line, 
and  within  a  few  inches  of  the  beak  of  the  rival  cock.  Up 
to  that  time  the  cocks  had  been  most  placid,  then,  as  if  by 
magic,  up  ruffled  the  feathers  of  both.  Their  owners  drew 
them  apart,  and  again  faced  them  together.  Twice  this 
was  done,  each  time  more  feathers  ruffling  up,  and  the 
second  time  their  beaks  opening  in  anger.  Immediately 
each  man  spat  upon  his  cock's  head  for  luck,  after  which 
the  birds  were  let  loose,  the  proprietors  stepping  quickly 
back.  Like  furies,  in  a  second  the  two  cocks  went  for 
each  other  ;  jumping  right  up  into  the  air,  they  seemed  to 
fight  off  their  feet.  One  moment  of  deadly  combat,  and 
the  cock  belonging  to  the  richer  man  lay  dead.  It  was  not 
really  horrible,  for  it  was  almost  instantaneous,  and  a  far 
more  merciful  ending  than  the  slaughter  of  an  ordinary 
chicken  for  table  use.  This  cock  fought  for  two  or  three 
seconds  for  his  life,  and  perished  in  the  excitement  of  the 
fray  with  all  his  sporting  instincts  aroused  ;  thus  he 
valiantly  died  on  the  battlefield!  If  cock-fights  always 
ended  so  quickly  and  mercifully  there  would  be  nothing  cruel 
in  them  ;  but,  unfortunately,  this  is  not  always  the  case. 
One  combat  was  enough  for  me,  I  had  seen  all  I  wanted — 
the    ring,    the   enthusiasm    of  the    spectators,  the  pluck  of 


A    PEEP  AT  A    COCK-FIGHT.  75 

the  birds,  and  had  luckily  witnessed  a  practically  painless 
ending,  so  I  went  away.  Alas!  Horrors  of  endless  cuts 
and  hacks,  and  long  drawn  out  tragedies  sometimes  occur 
at  such  contests,  when  the  birds  lie  bleeding  and  panting, 
and  yet  struggle  to  rise  again,  for  they  say  a  cock  fights 
even  after  he  is  dead  ! 

Mexicans  have  a  wonderful  way  of  sending  fighting 
cocks  by  train.  They  take  a  piece  of  board  about  five  feet 
long  and  a  foot  wide.  Then  they  buy  the  very  cheapest 
sombreros  (hats)  they  can  get.  They  double  the  brims 
together  to  form  a  basket,  and  put  Mr.  Cock  inside.  His 
feet  go  down  into  the  head  part  ;  his  tail  sticks  out  at  one 
end  and  his  head  at  the  other,  while  the  two  flaps  of  the 
brim  meet  over  his  back  and  keep  his  feathers  from  ruffling, 
and  the  edges  are  nailed  to  the  board.  Three  or  four 
cocks  will  travel  on  one  board  ;  they  look  like  so  many 
basket  hats  fixed  like  the  rungs  of  a  ladder  on  the  board, 
until  one  sees  a  cock's  head  projecting  at  one  end  of  each 
hat  and  his  tail  at  the  other.  Their  heads  hardly  look  like 
cocks',  because  they  are  shorn  of  their  combs,  which  are 
always  given  to  the  birds  to  eat  for  luck,  and  while  still 
bleeding  from  the  operation  they  swallow  the  dainty  morsel. 
These  combs  are  cut  off  so  that  their  adversaries  may  not 
have  such  nice  projecting  objects  at  which  to  aim. 

Sometimes  the  birds  are  carried  from  place  to  place  in 
curious  baskets. 

There  are  regular  trainers  for  Los  Gallos,  men  who 
spend  their  time  training  the  creatures,  just  as  in  other 
lands  horses  are  trained  for  racing.  The  cocks  are  kept  in 
rows  in  their  separate  little  stalls,  and  each  has  his  name 
painted  above  him,  as  in  a  racing  stable. 

El  Mauser    .         .     The  Champion  Chato       .         .         .     Snub  Nose 

El  Gorrion   .         .     The  Sparrow  Gate         .         .         .     Cat 

Each    bird    is   fastened   by  a   little    chain    to    the    floor. 


76  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

Every  day  he  is  taken  out  for  a  run,  and  is  allowed  a 
dust  bath  to  clean  and  preen  himself.  He  is  only  fed 
once  in  twenty-four  hours,  and  then  on  wet  corn  ;  but 
before  the  fioht  he  is  oiven  various  luxuries,  includino-  raw 
meat  and  sherry.  Cocks  never  fight  until  they  are  two 
years  old,  and  their  first  combat  is  often  their  last. 

Cock-fights  are  not  peculiar  to  Durango  ;  they  are  even 
more  universal  in  Mexico  than  bull-fights,  because  less 
expensive,  and  consequently  they  form  the  usual  Sunday 
entertainment  at  every  village  throughout  the  country  from 
October  till  March. 

In  towns  there  is  usually  a  cock-pit  ;  but  in  villages  the 
fights  take  place  at  the  street  corners,  as  I  myself  have 
often  seen. 

Durango  is  also  famous  for  its  bull-fights  ;  only  a  fort- 
nioht  before  we  arrived   there  had  been  areat  excitement 


'& 


over  one.  The  entertainment  was  poor,  the  bulls  showing 
no  pluck  ;  the  populace  became  angry,  and  fiercely  threw 
stones  and  orange-peel,  and  even  tore  up  their  seats  and 
hurled  them  down  at  the  unfortunate  matadors  and  animals. 
The  mayor  rose  and  called  for  order  ;  no  one  listened  ; 
he  shouted  to  the  spectators  to  behave  properly — no  one 
paid  any  attention.  They  began  to  demolish  the  bull-ring 
and  throw  pieces  of  wood  studded  with  nails  about  wildly. 
He  commanded  the  soldiers — who  are  always  present  on 
/  such  occasions — to  clear  the  ring.  Shots  were  fired,  a 
furious  row  ensued,  dozens  of  people  were  severely  injured, 
and  several  persons  killed.  The  Mayor  subsequently  for- 
bade "  another  bull-fight  pending  his  pleasure,"  by  way  of 
punishment  to  the  rioters. 

Shooting  is  by  no  means  uncommon  in  Mexico,  and 
many  of  the  people  in  towns  like  Durango,  who  are  now 
living  in  wealth,  were  bandits  a  few  years  ago.  Strangers 
are  not  molested,  and  in  any  ordinary  way  it  is  perfectly 
safe   to  go   about ;   but   rows   frequently   occur    among   the 


A  cock-fight. 


The  water-seller. 


[  To  face  page  j6. 


A    PEEP  AT  A    COCK-FIGHT.  77 

residents  themselves  ;  for  about  three  halfpence  they  can 
get  drunk  on  pulque,  a  fight  ensues,  and  a  stab  in  the  back 
is  the  result.  A  man  going  off  to  his  work  in  the  early- 
morning  may  find  a  dead  body  lying  in  the  road-way.  Of 
course  there  is  an  enquiry — the  Mayor  settles  the  matter, 
and,  as  a  rule,  sends  the  offender  to  join  the  army,  military 
discipline  being  the  ordinary  punishment  for  most  crimes. 

We  were  walking  back  from  the  Plaza  one  night,  after 
listening  to  the  music,  and  while  passing  through  a  deserted 
street — where  the  lamps  were  only  oil — we  heard  a  drunken 
brawl.  Two  men  were  apparently  fighting  ;  the  one  was 
noisily  drunk,  his  companion  seemed  to  be  trying  to  take 
him  home.  They  were  reeling  along,  falling  at  intervals, 
and  evidently  quarrelsome.  The  houses  in  the  street 
were,  as  usual,  one  storey  high,  flat-roofed,  and  entirely 
devoid  of  windows.  Suddenly  the  more  sober  man 
clutched  his  comrade  under  the  arms  from  behind,  kicked 
open  one  of  the  doors,  and  the  two  tumbled  into  a  little 
tenement  shrouded  in  inky  darkness.  A  piercing  yell  and 
a  howl,  then  silence. 

"  Is  he  going  to  murder  him  '^  "  I  asked,  horrified  at 
the  spectacle. 

"  Probably  not  ;  the  more  sober  one  is  merely  taking  his 
friend  home." 

"But  surely  we  ought  to  go  and  see  what  has  happened  ; 
that  terrible  yell  meant  mischief ;  there  may  be  a  woman 
and  children  in  there,  and  those  drunken  brutes  might 
murder  them  all.      Let  us  go." 

"  No,  we  had  better  not ;  we  strangers  never  interfere. 
If  we  did  it  would  probably  mean  death  to  the  gringo 
(foreigner),  so  come  along  and  think  no  more  about  it." 

But  I  could  not  help  thinking  more  about  it,  and  worried 
all  night  over  the  hideous  scene  and  terrified  yell.  Next 
morning  I  went  back,  on  the  plea  of  taking  my  Kodak  to 
get  some  pictures,  for  I  was  sure   I   heard  a  woman's  cry, 


78  MEXICO  AS  I  SAW  IT. 

and  wondered  what  had  happened  to  her  and  the  children 
when  those  intoxicated  ruffians  tumbled  in  upon  her. 

There,  at  the  door,  stood  a  smiling  woman,  whose 
apppjarance  testified  all  was  right.  Perhaps,  poor  soul,  she 
was  so  accustomed  to  such  midnight  revels  that  she  thought 
nothing  of  them. 

It  was  bright,  clear  weather,  the  sun  hot  in  the  day-time, 
the  temperature  falling  low  at  night  ;  but  then  Durango  is 
six  thousand  feet  above  sea  level,  considerably  higher  than 
any  mountain  peak  in  Britain. 

The  market  was  a  sight.  Sweets  (dulces)  of  all  kinds  of 
gorgeous  and  deadly  hues  are  a  source  of  trade,  and  little 
tables  of  confectionery  under  bright  cotton  umbrellas 
formed  a  pleasing  picture.  Sweet  potatoes,  covered  with 
thick  purple  syrup,  appeared  to  be  a  favourite  food,  and  a 
brown  dirtv-lookingf  cheese,  made  from  the  fruit  of  the 
prickly  pear,  considered  a  delicacy.  In  the  middle  of  the 
market  hall  was  a  cock-pit,  which  looked  like  a  large  well 
or  fountain,  but  was  meant  for  a  less  useful,  and  more  cruel, 
purpose.  A  quantity  of  the  market  produce  was  in  curious 
open  tubs  made  of  ox-skin,  with  the  hair  on  ;  the  Mexicans 
have  evolved  a  way  of  making  tubs,  and  even  carts,  out  of 
strips  of  wood  and  cow-hide !  Their  ropes  are  woven  from 
the  cactus,  maguey  and  corn  plants,  or  from  horses'  tails  ; 
this  latter  fact  was  particularly  interesting  to  me,  as  ropes 
made  from  horse-hair  are  the  only  kind  in  use  in  Iceland. 
Mexico  shows  distinct  traces  of  Egyptian,  Chinese,  and 
other  origins,  of  which  more  hereafter  ;  but  the  tail-rope 
reminds  a  traveller  forcibly  of  Iceland. 

How  do  the  children  of  Mexico  ever  live  to  grow  up  ? 
Most  of  them  die,  it  is  true  that  the  native  population  does 
not  increase,  but  how  is  it  that  any  survive  ?  On  a  sharp 
cold  morning  there  is  a  touch  of  frost  in  the  air.  When 
the  sun  is  out  the  thermometer  stands  at  90°  or  100°  in  the 
shade,  but  in  the  cold  of  early  morning,  when  every  native 


A    PEEP  AT  A    COCK-FIGHT.  79 

had  on  his  blanket,  a  couple  of  stark-naked  babies — aged 
two  and  three  respectively — were  squatting  in  a  wooden 
packing-case  in  the  market  place.  They  were  jumping  up 
and  down,  playing  and  crying,  but  their  mother  was  busy 
selling  pottery,  and  just  turned  round  and  bade  them  be 
quiet.  One  punched  the  other's  head  and  made  it  cry,  but 
the  mother,  beyond  scolding,  took  no  notice  of  them.  They 
were  fighting  over  a  bit  of  sugar  cane,  which  both  wanted 
to  suck.  They  looked  blue  with  cold  ;  they  had  absolutely 
not  a  rag  on,  and  there  was  not  a  sack  even  at  the  bottom  of 
the  wooden  box.      Poor  little  shivering  mortals,  what  a  life  ! 

Throwing  dice  at  the  market  corners  is  a  great  entertain- 
ment, indeed,  there  is  no  form  of  gambling  unknown  to  the 
Mexican,  who  will  shake  a  bottle  of  cream  up  and  down 
in  one  hand  to  make  butter,  and  throw  his  dice  for  centavos 
with  the  other. 

The  Cathedral  in  Durango  is  handsome.  The  place  is 
terribly  priest-ridden,  and  the  Church  wealthy,  but  the 
gorgeous  draperies,  jewels,  and  laces  are  hidden  away,  and 
the  altar  decorations  strike  a  stranger  as  tawdry  in  the 
extreme.  In  all  the  churches  of  Mexico,  old  lace  has  been 
superseded  by  common,  machine-made  curtain  stuff,  while 
cotton  hangings  have  supplanted  the  silks  and  velvets  of  yore. 

There  are  few  seats  in  the  churches,  everyone  kneels  Greek 
fashion,  anywhere  on  the  stone  flags,  and  we  saw  people 
crawling  on  their  knees  to  the  altar,  others  doing  penance 
with  their  arms  extended,  and  various  curious  forms  of 
worship. 

Outside  the  town,  on  a  hill,  is  an  old  cathedral  with  a 
famous  shrine.  It  is  believed  to  be  a  sort  of  miraculous 
haven,  where  all  diseases  may  be  cured.  At  certain 
seasons  of  the  year  pilgrimages  are  made  to  this  edifice, 
not  only  by  the  sick,  but  by  their  friends,  for  invalids  who 
are  too  ill  to  go.  They  crawl  up  that  long  hill-side  on 
their  hands  and  knees  to  pray  for  deliverance  from  disease. 


8o  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

Old  people  are  sometimes  eight  or  ten  hours  getting  up  to 
the  church  ;  but  they  think  nothing  of  the  fatigue,  so  great  is 
their  faith,  so  strong  their  religious  belief  in  the  pilgrimage. 

On  Saturday,  when  the  natives  of  Mexico  receive  their 
wages,  they  redeem  their  things  from  pawn  for '  Sunday. 
On  Monday  they  go  and  put  them  all  back  again. 
Wonderful  things  may  sometimes  be  found  at  the  pawn- 
shops, though  filthy  rags  are  more  commonly  met  with 
than  anything  else. 

In  most  towns  the  drinkino-  water  has  to  be  fetched 
from  public  wells,  men  and  women  carrying  it  in  pitchers 
on  their  heads.  The  scenes  around  the  wells  remind 
one  of  Venice,  though  the  brown  earthenware  pots  are 
Egyptian  in  shape.  In  many  places  there  are  water  sellers 
who  carry  the  liquid  in  large  vessels  on  their  backs,  or 
wheel  it  round  the  town  in  a  barrow. 

In  Durango,  streams  of  water  run  down  the  street. 
They  are  covered  in,  except  here  and  there,  where  a 
stone  flag  is  left  off  for  the  buckets  to  be  conveniently 
dipped.  Sometimes  the  drain  is  at  the  side  of  the  foot- 
path, at  others  in  the  middle  of  the  road.  The  Indian  takes 
off  his  hat,  places  it  on  the  road  beside  him,  and  almost  dis- 
appears after  his  can  into  the  hole  in  his  endeavours  to  get 
the  water.  Oil  cans  are  universally  used  for  this  purpose. 
These  openings  in  the  street  are  terrible  traps  on  a  dark 
night,  and  mean  a  tumble  of  three  or  four  feet  for  anyone 
who  steps  in  by  accident. 

In  Durango  there  is  music  in  the  Alameda  every  even- 
ing. This  is  a  thoroughly  Mexican  custom,  and  a  funny 
one,  too,  in  some  ways.  Alameda  means,  and  is,  a  sort  of 
public  square  which  is  to  be  found  in  every  town.  The 
Mexicans  are  musical,  even  the  poorest  Indians  sing  and 
play  to  amuse  themselves.  On  one  occasion  we  were 
passing  a  few  huts  made  of  bamboo  reeds,  and  hearing  a 
noise  peeped  in  at  one  of  the  openings — doors  there  are 


A    PEEP  AT  A    COCK-FIGHT.  8i 

none.  There  a  man  was  singing  "La  Golondrina " — -a 
sort  of  national  hymn — to  the  accompaniment  of  a  harp. 
Such  a  harp  !  He  had  made  it  himself  out  of  bits  of  a  chair 
and  the  leg  of  a  wooden  bedstead.  It  really  was  a  won- 
derful production  ;  and  the  sounds  emitted  were  not  at  all 
bad.  We  admired  his  ingenuity,  and  would  have  bought 
anything  so  eminently  quaint  ;  but  he  prized  his  handiwork^ 
more  than  silver,  and  declined  to  part  with  it. 

To  return  to  the  Alameda.  Mexican  people  like  to  walk 
abroad  in  the  dark — of  course  there  is  no  twiliafht.  About 
six  o'clock  on  a  winter's  day,  night  has  settled  clown,  and 
then  the  inhabitants  turn  out  in  shoals  to  pace  up  and 
down  the  Alameda.  This  may  seem  strange  ;  but  it  is 
the  way  they  were  brought  up— to  come  out,  like  the  bats 
and  owls,  at  night.  Except  in  Mexico  City — which  is 
more  cosmopolitan — the  men  all  walk  on  one  side  and  the 
women  on  the  other  ;  but  reverse  ways,  so  that  they  meet 
one  another.  It  is  a  curious  mode  of  procedure,  and  to 
our  mind  hardly  amusing,  yet  thus  they  trudge  round  and 
round  for  an  hour  or  so  every  evening.  A  man  will  time 
his  place  to  pass  the  girl  of  his  choice  quite  close,  and  we 
have  seen  little  notes  and  flowers  thrust  into  her  hand 
in  passing,  while  "  Mamma  "  walked  apparently  quite  un- 
suspiciously by  her  side. 

Love-making  in  Mexico  is  a  queer  affair.  A  man 
admires  a  girl  he  meets  on  the  Alameda  ;  follows  her  home, 
sees  where  his  novia  (lady-love)  lives,  and,  if  he  be  really 
taken  with  her,  begins  to  play  "the  role  of  the  bear."  This 
means  that  he  nightly  stands  outside  her  window  (for  the 
better-class  houses  have  them),  strange  iron-barred  windows 
like  one  sees  in  Italy.  Some  tine  night  the  lady  notices 
her  "  novio,"  and  waves  her  hand  ;  another  she  smiles. 
After  months  of  waiting  at  his  divinity's  casement,  he  may 
throw  her  a  flower  or  pass  her  a  note  ;  but  it  is  only  when 
he  has  proved  his  devotion  that  he  may  seek  an  introduction 

6 


82  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

and  call,  and  finally  ask  for  her  hand.  I  saw  a  window  in 
Durango  where  a  man  had  played  the  bear  daily  for  three 
years  and,  said  my  friend  : — 

"He  has  only  just  gained  admittance  to  the  house  as 
a  suitor !  " 

From  the  point  of  view  of  the  English  or  American 
woman — let  us  say  the  Aryan  woman,  for  that  term  repre- 
sents the  English-speaking  race — the  Mexican  lady  has  a 
poor  time.  She  seldom  walks  out,  and  is  then  usually 
accompanied  by  a  maid,  she  hardly  ever  rides  a  horse,  and 
to  mount  a  bicycle  would  be  considered  positively  immoral ! 
She  is  pretty  and  charming,  kind  and  courteous  ;  but  of  the 
joy  of  sport  or  games  she  knows  nothing.  She  wears  silk 
petticoats  and  Louis  XV.  shoes  ;  short  skirts  and  stout  boots, 
with  their  accompanying  emancipation,  are  unknown  to 
her.  She  lives  the  life  of  the  exotic  flower,  not  that  of  the 
field  daisy. 

Talking  of  women,  a  Mexican  man  once  said  : — 

"  I  give  my  wife  all  the  smart  frocks  she  wants,  lots  of 
chocolates,  and  diamonds  on  her  birthday  ;  what  more 
can  any  woman  desire  ?  " 

What  more  ?  Great  heavens,  what  less  }  The  doll,  the 
puppet,  the  plaything  may  be  contented  with  chocolates  ; 
but  the  woman  }  No,  the  capable,  thinking,  loving  woman, 
who  is  fit  to  bring  up  children,  and  able  to  manage  a  home, 
who  is  worthy  of  the  love  and  respect  of  a  man  whose  help- 
mate and  companion  she  ought  to  be  through  life — will  she 
be  satisfied  with  chocolates  ? 

With  the  men  it  is  quite  different.  They  breed  horses 
and  race  them,  play  polo,  ride  daily,  cycle,  enjoy  the  Mexican 
ball-game  or  lawn  tennis,  and  even  handle  a  cricket  bat. 
They  are  more  athletic  than  the  over-working  Americans, 
and  less  so  than  the  under-working  English!  Mexican 
men  take  much  exercise,  are  therefore  often  away  from 
home,   and    of  course    their  wives    cannot    be    with    them 


A    PEEP  AT  A    COCK-FIGHT.  83 

as  they  do  not  participate  in  any  of  their  athletic  amuse- 
ments. 

The  present  condition  of  the  women  of  Mexico  is  not 
unhke  her  position  in  the  England  of  the  eighteenth  cen- 
tury. It  is  barely  more  than  a  hundred  years  since  women 
were  first  allowed  to  think  for  themselves  in  England. 

"  A  soulless  toy  for  tyrants'  lusts  "  wrote  Byron  of  the 
women  of  the  East  ;  but  they  knew  no  better,  and  the 
Moor  and  the  Turk  are  the  sons  of  such  women  to-day. 
It  is  only  in  England  and  America  that  women  have  found 
their  level.  It  is  the  sons  of  these  countries  that  are  now- 
making  the  history  of  the  world. 

A  masculine  woman  is  as  bad  as  a  feminine  man.  Each 
sex  has  its  place,  its  own  appointed  duties  to  fulfil  ;  yet  the 
strong  man  is  none  the  worse  for  being  kind  and  gentle, 
nor  is  the  kind  and  gentle  woman  in  any  degree  lacking  in 
these  qualities  because  she  is  mentally  strong. 

Mexican  girls  never  meet  men  alone,  not  even  when 
they  are  engaged  ;  they  marry  very  young,  and  live  most 
secluded  lives  ;  one  might  almost  as  well  enter  a  convent 
as  be  a  Mexican  lady  in  a  small  town,  so  far  as  society  and 
amusement  are  concerned. 

Love-making  is  a  very  public  affair  in  the  country  of 
Cortes'  adoption  ;  it  can  be  witnessed  at  any  street  corner 
every  night.  The  novios  are  always  there — she  on  her 
balcony,  or  behind  her  barred  window  ;  he — a  wild  enthu- 
siastic youth — standing  below.  With  the  rich  folk  marriage 
is  the  natural  sequence,   and  all  goes  well,  or  ought  to. 

With  the  poor  folk  it  is  otherwise.  Enquiries  have 
lately  been  set  on  foot  concerning  the  morality  of  village 
life,  and  the  consequent  discoveries  are  positively  appall- 
ing !  There  are  pueblos  where  no  wedding  has  occurred 
in  a  generation  !  The  Government  have  decided  to 
abolish  polygamy,  and  insist  on  marriage.  They  are  none 
too  soon  in    undertaking  this   delicate   task  ;    the   state  of 

6* 


84  MEXICO  AS  I  SAW  IT. 

affairs  revealed  is  simply  awful !  Two  hundred  miles  from 
the  City  of  Chihuahua  a  hamlet,  San  Felizo,  was  visited, 
when  it  was  discovered  among  the  twelve  families  com- 
-  posing  the  population,  there  had  never  been  a  marriage 
from  the  oldest  generation  to  the  youngest.  Kinship  had 
been  disregarded,  and  the  results  were  terrible.  President 
Diaz  has  taken  up  the  matter  warmly,  and,  aided  by  Govern- 
ment and  priests,  a  better  condition  of  things  may  shortly 
be  looked  for. 

I  need  not  apologise  for  the  disagreeable  things  I  have  to 
say  concerning  Mexico.  They  are  not  meant  to  hurt  the 
feelings  of  many  kind  friends  in  that  interesting  land,  but  if 
one  sees  the  good  side  of  life  one  must  necessarily  likewise  see 
the  bad,  and  the  only  useful  result  is  obtained  by  weighing 
the  two  in  the  balance.  Whether  my  judgment  be  right 
or  wrong,  that  judgment  is  at  least  honest.  This  book  is 
an  account  of  "  Mexico  as  I saiu  ?V,"  and  no  one  and  no  con- 
sideration has  swayed  my  judgment.  I  do  not  possess  a 
single  share  in  railway  or  mine,  I  have  no  interest  whatever 
in  Mexico — I  wish  I  had,  for  commerce  promises  well — and 
therefore  the  opinions  expressed  in  these  pages  are  un- 
biassed, even  if  they  be  wrong  ! 

One  cannot  go  very  far  into  Mexico  without  seeing  and 
Clearing  a  great  deal  about  mining  industries,  but  the  sub- 
ject is  so  vast  it  will  be  treated  with  trade  in  a  later  chapter. 
There  are  mines  everywhere,  chiefly  in  the  hands  of 
Americans  and  worked  by  American  capital.  With  rail- 
ways the  case  is  different,  England  has  found  the  money 
and  built  most  of  the  lines. 

The  capitalists  of  the  country  are  certainly  Anglo-Saxon, 
for  the  most  part  enterprising  young  men,  who  live  a 
rough  but  healthy  life,  and  are  pushing  the  English-speak- 
ing race  and  its  language  into  the  very  heart  of  Mexico. 

What  will  this  mean  in  the  future  .'*  Will  Mexico  some 
day  find  herself  in  the  position  of  the  Transvaal  }     Will 


A    PEEP  AT  A    COCK-FIGHT.  85 

she  try  to  impose  taxation  on  all  foreigners  without  repre- 
sentation ?  If  so,  it  will  be  a  bad  day  for  the  land  of 
Montezuma,  which  will  then  be  overwhelmed  by  the 
stronger  and  wealthier  force  which  even  now  practically 
controls  the  railways  and  great  industries. 


\ 
\ 


86 


CHAPTER  VI. 


HOW  I  WAS  THE    FIRST    PASSENGER    ON    THE    NEWEST  RAILWAY 


• 


IN    MEXICO, 


It  is  always  delightful  to  know  one  is  doing  something 
that  no  one  else  has  done  before,  therefore  I  felt  enchanted 
when  asked  to  go  on  a  final  inspection  trip  with  the 
engineers  of  a  new  line  ere  it  was  open  to  the  public  ;  in 
fact,  to  be  the  first  passenger  to  Santiago  by  the  newest 
railway  in  Mexico. 

This  railway  must  become  very  important  in  time,  for 
it  is  the  last  link  but  one  in  a  long  chain  connecting  the 
Mexican  International  with  the  Pacific  Coast,  and  shortly 
after  this  book  is  published  that  final  link  may  be  forged 
to  the  port  of  Mazatlan,  a  distance  of  something  like  one 
hundred  miles  from  Santiago.  But  those  hundred  miles 
cover  steep  and  terrible  mountains,  the  spur  of  the  Rockies, 
in  fact,  which  has  hitherto  baffled  the  skill  of  engineers. 
Now,  however,  all  difficulties  will  be  overcome.  Mexico  is 
so  go-ahead  to-day. 

Leaving  Durango,  with  its  queer,  old-world  ways,  in 
Mr.  Lorenzo  Johnson's  car  "  Sabinas,"  we  proceeded  to 
Santiago  along  the  most  modern  of  all  railways — a  railway 
so  modern,  in  fact,  that  it  was  not  opened  to  the  public  until 
a  couple  of  days  after  our  journey.  It  was  quite  extra- 
ordinary to  notice  how  flat  the  valleys  were  between  the 
mountain  ranges,  allowing  the  line  to  run  straight  and 
smooth  for   miles  at  a  time ;  but  a   sudden    change  came 


HOW  I    WAS    THE   FIRST  PASSENGER.  87 

occasionally,  when  wonderful  engineering  skill  was 
exhibited.  Along  the  track,  shunted  on  a  siding,  we  twice 
passed  "work  trains,"  that  is  to  say,  entire  trains  composed 
of  several  box  cars,  in  which  persons  engaged  in  making 
the  line  lived,  and  were  moved  about  as  necessity  arose. 
It  is  all  very  ingenious.  A  bit  of  line  is  laid,  the  work 
train  is  run  along  it  until  some  more  of  the  road  is  ready, 
when  they  follow  up.  Thus  the  workmen  literally  live  on 
the  spot,  a  most  important  matter  in  a  country  where 
villages  lie  so  far  apart.  The  engineers  have  a  series  of 
tents,  and.  of  course,  these  camps  can  be  moved  as 
required.  Sometimes  the  line  is  begun  at  both  ends,  to 
enable  the  men  to  meet  in  the  middle  ;  generally  the  most 
difficult  piece  of  engineering  is  attacked  first,  so  that 
it  may  be  ready  by  the  time  the  rest  is  completed. 

Small  wooden  houses,  forming  a  miniature  village,  met 
our  eyes  here  and  there  ;  these  had  been  put  up  for  the 
permanent  dwellings  of  the  engineers  and  railway  people, 
but  as  it  was  inexpedient,  at  first,  to  erect  more  buildings  than 
were  absolutely  necessary,  no  attempt  had  then  been  made 
at  a  station.  A  railway  truck  served  the  purpose  p7'0  tern. 
When  once  things  were  a  little  more  advanced,  stations 
would  naturally  follow,  the  material  for  building  them 
being  brought  from  Durango,  the  nearest  town,  by  means 
of  the  railway  line  itself  Every  twenty  miles  or  so  we 
passed  one  of  these  strange  little  settlements  of  railway 
folk,  with  its  half-dozen  wooden  houses,  its  water-tank  for 
the  engines,  truck  station,  and  near  at  hand  a  siding. 
Thus  we  arrived  at  Chinacates,  which  up  to  that  time 
had  been  the  end  of  the  line.  A  few  box  cars,  and  a 
couple  of  tents,  constituted  the  terminus  ! 

On  the  edge  of  the  prairie  stood  two  wondrous  old 
diligences,  which  formerly  ran  twenty  miles  each  day  to 
Santiago.  Two  more  journeys,  and  their  life  on  that 
route  would  be  ended  ;  in  future  they  were  to  start  from 


88  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

Santiago  to  a  point  still  further  afield,  until  again  followed 
up  by  the  railway.  The  iron  horse  was  chasing  the  old 
coach  from  the  road.  Once  painted  bright  red,  these 
quaint  vehicles  were  much  faded  by  sun  and  weather. 
They  hung  on  enormously  thick  leather  straps  instead  of 
springs,  and  as  they  moved  swung  from  side  to  side. 
There  was  room  for  two  people  beside  the  driver  ;  behind 
him,  and  on  the  top,  three  could  sit — beneath  a  cotton 
head-covering — whilst  inside,  nine  persons  could  be  stowed 
away,  which  must  have  been  a  fearfully  close  pack. 
Behind  went  the  luggage  and  bundles.  One  vehicle  was 
having  its  brake  mended  ;  the  coachman  held  a  block 
of  wood  nearly  a  foot  square,  and  was  trimming  it  to  fit 
the  wheel.  He  seemed  to  be  managing  cleverly  ;  still, 
everything  depended  on  that  brake  holding  out,  for  he  had 
a  tremendous  mountain  pass  before  him. 

We  alighted  from  our  travelling  home  at  Chinacates,  as 
it  had  to  be  detached  from  the  single  passenger  car,  luggage 
van,  and  two  trucks  which  composed  the  mail  train  from 
Durango. 

That  railway  terminus  was  intensely  interesting ;  what 
a  contrast  to  Perth  in  Scotland,  or  St.  Louis  in  Missouri ! 
No  house  of  any  kind,  no  proper  station,  only  that  van, 
just  a  handful  of  passengers,  and  bags  of  silver  ore  ; 
nothing  else  to  be  seen,  save  miles  and  miles  of  wild 
prairie,  with  high  mountains  towering  beyond.  The  mail 
train — which  I  honestly  believe  did  not  contain  a  single 
letter — waited  an  hour,  and  then  went  back  again  to 
Durango,  while  the  few  passengers  it  had  carried  to  China- 
cates went  off  in  coaches,  or  on  mules  and  horses  brought 
from  neighbouring  haciendas  by  their  friends  to  meet  them. 
Those  who  had  arrived  in  like  fashion  squatted  about, 
intending  to  travel  to  Durango  in  the  train,  when  it  was 
ready  for  its  return  journey.  In  this  small  way  many  things 
begin,  but  after   the  lapse  of  a  few  years  what  a  difference ! 


HOW  I    WAS   THE  FIRST  PASSENGER.  89 

Our  shunting  was  soon  over,  and  back  "on  board"  we 
went.  The  first  train  to  pass  up  and  down  that  splendid 
gorge,  and  steam  into  the  little  mud-hut  town  of  Santiago, 
consisted  of  an  engine  and  the  private  car  "  Sabinas."  It 
was  truly  a  novel  experience.  We  rose  a  thousand  feet 
during  the  twenty-mile  run — a  steep  incline  and  a  decline 
with  wondrous  curves.  It  was  amazing  to  find  how 
smoothly  we  travelled,  and  we  actually  accomplished  twenty 
miles  in  fifty-seven  minutes  !  This,  as  previously  remarked, 
was  a  new  line,  barely  finished,  with  considerable  grades 
and  turns  round  the  mountain's  sides,  and  yet  we  did  the 
twenty  miles  in  less  than  an  hour  !  Some  railway  lines  in 
England  that  have  been  in  use  for  a  half  a  century  ought 
to  be  put  to  shame  by  such  a  feat. 

We  passed  wonderful  flocks  of  birds,  not  hundreds  or 
thousands,  but  tens  of  thousands.  They  looked  like  black 
patches  in  the  fields,  and  rose  like  sable  clouds  into  the  air. 
The  effect  was  strange,  and  although  I  have  seen  great 
flights  of  birds  and  locusts  in  Morocco,  I  never  saw  any- 
thing resembling  those  in  Mexico. 

Another  matter  that  arrested  my  attention  was  the  fact 
that  platforms  were  erected  in  corn-fields.  These  were  six 
feet  square,  light  and  primitive,  rising  some  eight  feet  above 
the  ground,  or  about  two  feet  higher  than  the  Indian  corn 
when  fully  grown.  Men  stand  on  them  at  hours  of  the  day 
when  crows,  blackbirds,  or  wild  geese  congregate,  and  with 
a  sling  about  a  yard  long,  which  they  twist  round  and  round, 
fiing  a  stone  with  a  crack  like  a  pistol  shot.  Sometimes  they 
actually  kill  the  bird,  at  other  times  merely  frighten  it  away. 
One  end  of  the  sling  is  securely  fixed  to  the  man's  thumb 
or  wrist,  the  other  he  holds  loosely  ;  at  the  end  is  a  bit  of 
leather  with  a  hole  in  the  middle  for  the  stone  to  rest  on. 
As  the  man  swings  the  missile  over  his  head  with  two  or 
three  whirls,  he  releases  the  loose  end,  and  away  flies  the 
stone  with  no  uncertain  aim. 


go  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

I  The   Mexican    Indian    is   kind   to  all   animals,    with    the 

. "     exception  of  his  beasts  of  burden.      He  pets  his  cats  and 

M     dogs,  and  lets  them  sleep  on  his  bed  by  day  or  night  ;  but 

-     he  kicks  and  punches,  and  even  sticks  nails  into  his  mules 

to  make  them  go.      He  loads  up  poor  little  donkeys   until 

they  can  hardly  move,  and  when  they  fall  by  the  way  he 

kicks  and  beats  them  until  they  stagger  up   again.      But, 

unlike  the  Moor  whom  he  so  much  resembles  in  this  respect, 

^e  does  not  himself  ride  on  the  top  of  the  load,  and,  indeed, 

'    rarely  mounts  a  pack  animal.     When  riding  on  his  ordinary 

pacing  steed  the  Mexican,  like  the   Icelander,  claps  his  legs 

all  the  time  ;   he  rides   thus  for  hours,  perpetually  striking 

the  animal's  sides  as  a  means  of  persuading  it  to  go  on. 

The    natives    often    ride    pillion    fashion — two  grown    men 

I*  on  one  small  donkey  being  quite  a  common  sight. 

Along  the  line  from  Durango  to  Santiago,  then  barely 
in  working  order,  it  was  interesting  to  see  the  beginning  of 
a  new  track.  It  really  was  a  beautiful  bit  of  scenery  we 
beheld  while  we  turned  and  twisted  in  the  canon,  passed 
through  cuttings,  or  crossed  the  Santiago  river  ;  but  to  me, 
not  being  an  engineer,  and  a  novice  with  regard  to  sleepers 
;  and  ties,  frogs  and  ballast,  and  other  queer  words  endlessly 
in  the  mouths  of  railway  men,  the  most  curious  things  were 
the  old  castles,  the  quaint  ruins,  or  sort  of  Irish  towers, 
which,  after  all,  were  nothing  of  the  kind,  being  merely 
extraordinary  rock  formations  in  the  hills  themselves. 

It  seemed  very  lovely  to  be  doing  something  for  the  first 
time  ;  who  knows  but  our  little  trip  might  lead  to  great 
'  developments?  There  are  mines  and  undiscovered  ores  in 
these  mountains  ;  there  is  timber  on  the  hills — and  timber 
is  of  great  value  in  Mexico — indeed,  there  are  great  possi- 
bilities throughout  that  wonderful  country,  and  the  funny 
little  ill-paved  adobe-built  huts  of  Santiago  may  some  day 
turn  into  a  prosperous  township. 

It  may  be  well  here  to  explain  what  adobe  houses,  so  uni- 


HOW  I    WAS    THE  FIRST  PASSENGER.  91 

versal  in  Mexico,  really  are.  Adobe  forts,  raised  by  Aztecs 
two  or  three  thousand  years  ago,  are  standing  to-day. 

Unlike  the  bricks  in  biblical  days,  there  is  no  straw  in 
an  adobe,  which  we  often  saw  being  made.  Two  or  three 
men  would  be  at  work  together  ;  they  dug  out  the  clayey 
soil,  mixed  it  with  water,  put  it  into  wooden  moulds,  which 
generally  held  four  at  a  time,  and  left  the  muddy  compounds 
to  dry  in  the  sun,  when  they  turned  them  over  to  dry  the 
other  side.  When  quite  firm,  these  strange  brown  earth 
bricks,  about  6  x  12  x  18  inches,  were  ready  for  building 
purposes.  Adobes  are  native  products,  and  the  haciend-as 
throughout   Mexico  are  built  of  them. 

Sometimes  the  engineers  have  strange  experiences  when 
constructing  lines  in  those  wild  districts.  Not  long  before 
our  visit  a  poor  fellow  met  with  a  sad  fate.  He  went  off 
cheerily  one  fine  morning  with  his  gun,  in  pursuit  of  game. 
He  did  not  return  for  supper  as  arranged,  so  the  next  day 
his  friends  set  out  in  search  of  him,  but  two  days  elapsed 
before  they  found  his  body  on  the  mountain  side.  He  had 
been  stabbed  in  the  back,  otherwise  there  were  no  signs  of 
violence.  Presumably  he  had  been  killed  for  the  sake  of 
his  gun  and  a  few  valuables.  Some  fiend  had  doubtless 
taken  his  life  simply  for  that  handful  of  spoil. 

On  we  puffed.  -Mr.  Rankin  Johnson,  the  chief  engineer 
of  the  line,  a  nephew  of  my  host,  with  a  couple  of  engineers 
had  started  an  hour  earlier,  preceding  us  on  a  hand-car — not 
for  our  safety,  but  simply  because  they  wanted  to  examine 
some  culverts — and  having  come  out  to  Chinacates  in  our 
car,  they  began  their  inspection  on  their  own  account,  so 
that  later  we  might  bring  them  back  from  Santiago  to 
Durango.  Half-way  along  the  line  we  overtook  the  party. 
In  order  to  let  us  pass,  they  and  their  four  peons 
alighted,  lifted  the  whole  affair  bodily  off  the  track,  and 
directly  our  engine  and  car  had  gone  by,  they  put  it 
back  on  to  the  line  and  resumed  their  journey  behind  us. 


\ 


92  MEXICO  AS  I  SAW  IT. 

I  once  had  a  narrow  escape  on  a  hand  or  trolley  car 
which,  as  it  had  nothing  to  do  with  the  International  Line, 
I  may  relate. 

Engineers  and  road-keepers  are  continually  travelling  up 
and  down  the  line,  since  on  every  railway  track  in  the  world 
some  daily  repairs  are,  or  should  be,  in  progress.  It  is  not 
always  practicable  to  utilize  a  train,  or  even  an  engine,  to 
get  to  the  spot  where  they  wish  to  make  their  investigation, 
therefore  they  use  a  hand-car.  This,  as  the  word  implies, 
is  worked  by  hand.  It  is  on  four  small  wheels,  which  run 
along  the  track,  and  usually  has  a  sort  of  plank  seat  in  front 
for  the  "  boss,"  as  our  Yankee  friends  would  say.  There 
is  always  just  enough  danger  about  such  a  ride  to  render  it 
excitinof,  but  it  is  a  form  of  locomotion  hardlv  suitable  for 
anyone  suffering  from  "  nerves,"  especially  on  such  a  down- 
ward grade  as  a  "four  per  cent.,"  where  the  men  standing 
behind  have  to  apply  the  brake  with  all  their  strength,  to 
prevent  the  car  from  running  away. 

On  the  occasion  in  question  we  were  going  down  a  steep 
canon,  and  the  peons  were  working  hard  to  prevent  our 
speed  becoming  break-neck.  We  had  just  crossed  a  bridge 
— one  of  those  bridges  without  any  rails  at  the  side  to 
keep  one  from  falling  over,  merely  sleepers  laid  across 
supports  between  the  spaces  of  which  we  saw  the  water 
flowing  below.      It  was  fortunate  we  had  passed  this  point. 

Suddenly  an  engineer  seized  me  by  the  neck,  and  we  fell 
together,  on  the  edge  of  the  precipice.  It  was  a  bad  spot 
to  fall,  but  dazed  though  I  was,  I  realised  it  was  better  to 
be  upset  thus  ignominiously  than  to  be  smashed  to  atoms, 
as  our  car  immediately  was,  by  an  engine  which  had  come 
down  upon  us.  It  was  a  miraculous  escape  ;  the  iron 
wheels  of  our  car  flew  to  either  side,  while  the  wood 
cracked  up  into  a  thousand  splinters.  It  all  happened  in  a 
second,   but  oh,  what  an  experience ! 

Ears  accustomed  to  such  sounds  had  heard  the  engine 


HOW  I    WAS   THE  FIRST  PASSENGER.  93 

of  a  freight  train  when  turning  one  of  those  sharp 
corners.  The  peons  jumped  off,  and  my  friend  dragged 
me  along  with  him,  thus  saving  my  Hfe,  for  in  ignorance  of 
danger  I  should  have  sat  there  chatting  till  death  tore  down 
upon  me  from  behind. 

Engines  and  freight  cars  had  been  in  and  out  of 
Santiago  for  a  week  or  two,  but  such  a  thing  as  a 
proper  Pullman  had  never  before  been  seen  by  the 
inhabitants.  Their  amazement  was  delio^htful  to  witness. 
As  our  engine  steamed  in  front  of  the  town,  the  people 
began  to  assemble  to  look  at  what  was  still  such  a  novelty, 
when  they  discovered  something  strange  in  shape  and  form 
was  following  the  engine.  Young  people  fetched  out  their 
fathers  and  mothers,  the  fathers  and  mothers  unearthed  the 
aged,  even  the  blind,  and  gradually  the  entire  population  of 
the  little  township  gathered  together  to  see  a  Pullman  Car 
and  an  Englishwoman!  It  would  be  hard  to  say  which 
created  the  greater  excitement,  the  white  woman  who  came 
from  over  the  sea,  and  wore  a  hat,  or  the  car  which  had  real 
rooms  in  it,  beds,  a  kitchen  and  a  fire !  Never,  never  had 
anything  so  extraordinary  been  dreamt  of,  and  they  simply 
stood  round  open-mouthed  and  paralyzed  with  surprise. 

It  appears  that  when  the  first  engine  arrived  with  some 
freight  cars,  the  natives  were  terribly  alarmed,  so  experts 
carefully  explained  to  them  how  the  machinery  and  the 
steam  made  the  engine  pull  the  cars  along.  This  pacified 
them  ;  they  had  feared  it  was  something  uncanny,  which 
foreboded  evil.  One  day,  however,  an  engine  backed, 
when  terrible  was  the  consternation  of  the  populace. 
Nothing  had  been  said  about  that,  and  they  thought  it  must 
be  a  device  of  the  devil  himself!  Panic  reigned  for  a  time, 
for  those  uneducated  folk  are  terribly  superstitious. 

When  we  pulled  up  at  Santiago,  a  miniature  Jerusalem 
lay  before  us.  One-storeyed,  flat-roofed,  windowless,  mud- 
brick  houses,    huge    prickly   pears  and  cactus,   long-haired 


94  MEXICO  AS  I  SAW  IT. 

pigs,  women  with  shawls  over  their  heads,  generally  bare- 
footed, or — if  richer — wearing  sandals  of  leather,  all  these 
met  our  view.  Scenes  reminding  one  of  Bible  history- 
met  the  eye  on  every  side,  even  the  grinding  of  corn 
between  stones. 

Santiago  intends  to  grow  big  ;  it  has  already  started  a 
plaza,  or  public  garden,  and  even  put  up  a  band-stand, 
a  strange  anomaly  amidst  so  much  that  is  primitive.  Pigs 
and  chickens  were  running  about  the  ill-paved,  cobbled 
streets,  and  live  at  night  in  a  room  occupied  by  a  whole 
family.  The  door  of  the  house  is  shut,  there  is  no  window 
or  ventilator  of  any  kind,  and  darkness  and  general  stuffiness, 
added  to  the  odour  of  pigs  and  chickens,  prevail. 

Oil  lamps  occasionally  swing  across  a  street  from  ropes, 
but  only  where  four  roads  meet.  Women — and  quite 
young  women  too — stand  at  their  doors  smoking. 

From  twelve  noon  to  three  o'clock  is  the  hour  of  rest. 
Even  the  church  door  is  locked — an  almost  unknown  event 
in  a  Catholic  country.  Priests  are  not  allowed  to  dress  in 
their  clerical  robes  in  the  land  of  Montezuma,  so,  as  a  sort 
of  compromise,  they  wear  black  tall  hats !  Even  in  the 
wilds  of  the  country,  far  away  from  the  haunts  of  civilisation, 
one  meets  the  curious  spectacle  of  a  top  hat,  worn  with  a 
black  Spanish  cloak.  Such  top  hats  they  are,  too!  They 
would  do  credit  to  Ally  Sloper. 

In  the  middle  of  the  town  was  the  "  ball  wall  "  ;  every 
village  has  this.  Ball  is  a  great  Mexican  game ;  it  re- 
sembles tennis — ^not  lawn  tennis — except  that  it  is  played 
with  the  hand  instead  of  with  a  racquet,  and  the  wall  and 
sides  are  not  nearly  so  large  as  in  a  racquet  court. 

Santiago,  a  mighty  queer  old  spot,  untouched  by  civilisa- 
tion, is  still  real  primitive  old-world  Mexico.  Half-a-dozen 
engineers,  a  handful  of  engine-drivers,  and  a  few  miners 
were  the  only  white  people  who,  up  to  that  day,  had  set 
foot  in  the  place.     Yet  it  had  its  music-stand  and  its  fine 


HO IV  I    WAS    THE   FIRST  PASSENGER.  95 

old  church  ;  its  public  gardens  and  its  promenade.  The 
poorer  women  wore  their  reboso,  or  head  shawl,  and  the 
richer  their  lace  mantillas — until  my  arrival  a  woman  in  a 
hat  had  never  been  seen. 

When  we  returned  to  our  car  we  found  an  admiring 
crowd  still  standing  round,  engaged  busily  examining  it,  and 
when  we  left  the  town  the  crowd  ran  alongside  the  rails 
with  us  for  at  least  half  a  mile,  the  men  wildly  waving  their 
hats  and  yelling  ;  but  whether  they  were  most  interested 
in  the  sight  of  an  Englishwoman  or  a  Pullman  Car,  will 
ever  remain  a  mystery. 

A  couple  of  days  later  we  reached  Torreon  ;  it  was 
ten  o'clock,  and  my  train  for  Mexico  City — a  twenty-nine 
hours'  run — was  timed  to  leave  at  7.30  the  next  morning. 
I  was  to  bid  good-bye  to  the  delightful  car  which  had  been 
my  home  for  a  week,  and  which  finally  conveyed  me  to  the 
frontier  when  I  left  Mexico,  six  months  later. 

Letters  for  Mr.  Lorenzo  Johnson  and  business  telegrams 
were  brought  "on  board,"  and  an  enquiry  made  as  to 
whether  anyone  of  the  name  of  Tweedie  was  on  the  car. 

"  Yes  !  " 

"  Two  Federal  telegrams  arrived  yesterday  for  that 
name,  and  no  one  has  claimed  them." 

My  heart  jumped  ;  the  only  person  who  knew  I  might 
pass  through  Torreon  was  the  British  Consul  at  Mexico 
City,  who  kindly  allowed  my  letters  to  be  addressed  to  his 
house  ;  no  local  telegrams  could  have  discovered  my 
whereabouts.  "  Two  Federal  telepframs  '  sounded  most 
alarminor.  Had  anythino^  orone  wrona  in  Enoland,  and  did 
those  messages  contain  a  summons  home,  sent  on  from 
the  Consulate  ?  I  felt  literally  sick  with  apprehension, 
and  things  did  not  improve  when  it  transpired  that  no 
telegrams  could  possibly  be  unearthed  that  night.  The 
office  closed  at  eight  o'clock,  the  man  with  the  keys  was 
not  to  be  found,  and  no  information  could  be  obtained  before 


96  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

eight  next  morning,  while  my  southern  train  was  to  leave 
at  7.301     What  was  to  be  done  ? 

The  only  train  in  the  day  must  not  be  missed  for  caprice, 
and  yet  to  go  further  south  when  I  might  be  wanted  north, 
on  my  way  back  to  England,  seemed  impossible. 

What  a  niofht  of  misery  I  endured  !  Even  the  com- 
fortable  bed  in  the  Sabinas  had  lost  its  charm,  and  with 
each  succeeding  hour  things  looked  blacker  and  blacker. 
Something  must  be  done  at  dawn,  or  I  felt  I  should  go  mad. 
So  much  might  have  happened  nearly  six  thousand  miles 
away  in  London  since  my  last  letters  !  "  Two  telegrams  " 
rang  through  and  through  my  brain  !  One  might  not  have 
meant  much,  but  two  seemed  more  important,  especially 
when  ascertaining  my  whereabouts  must  have  caused  great 
thought  and  trouble.      It  was  horrible ! 

At  early  dawn  my  kind  host  was  up  and  away,  and  I 
waited  and  waited,  watching  the  streaks  of  day  break  into 
the  sky  before  the  sun  rose  at  six  o'clock.  He  returned  an 
hour  later.  He  had  found  the  Federal  Office  and  Clerk, 
had  appealed  to  the  Spanish  gentleman  on  behalf  of  the 
English  lady,  had  looked  through  a  whole  pile  of  telegrams, 
but  found  none  for  me. 

"  It  was  probably  a  mistake,"  said  he  ;  "most  likely  the 
official  had  got  confused  in  some  way  over  the  English 
name,"  and  accordingly,  somewhat  consoled,  I  left  for 
Mexico  City,  Mr.  Johnson  promising  to  continue  the 
search,  and  wire  to  me  along  the  line.  A  few  hours  later  I 
heard  "  nothing  had  turned  up,"  so  a  sleepless  night,  hours 
of  horrible  suspense  and  anxiety,  were  all  the  outcome 
of  some  stupid  blunder  ;  still,  even  twelve  hours  of  worry 
and  uncertainty  were  a  cheap  price  to  pay  for  escaping  what 
mioht  have  been  a  tanfjible  sorrow. 

It  was  a  sad  moment  when  I  bade  good-bye  to  the 
Sabinas  and  my  kind  host,  Mr.  Lorenzo  Johnson,  who  had 
made  my  trip  on  a  private  car  as  delightful  as  instructive. 


A  Mexican  well. 


A. 


--(^ 


■:■/  ■/. 


ri 


(irass  coal  made  Iroiii  cactus. 


To  face  page  97.  j 


HOW  I    WAS    THE  FIRST  PASSENGER.  97 

By  way  of  comfort,  he  gav^e  me  a  stick  of  sugar-cane  at 
parting,  and  I  found  the  watery  sweet  not  at  all  bad. 

Sucking  sugar-cane  is  a  great  Indian  habit ;  the  peasants 
of  Mexico  suck  cane  more  than  the  natives  of  the  United 
States  chew  gum,  and  that  is  saying  a  good  deal !  A  man 
will  buy  two  or  three  long  sticks  of  cane,  perhaps  eight  feet 
in  length,  and  after  peeling  off  the  outside,  will  cut  bit 
after  bit,  and  chew  it  all  day.  Perhaps  it  is  a  good  pre- 
ventive of  thirst. 

Mexico  must  surely  be  the  most  dusty  country  in  the 
world.  From  New  Orleans  to  Mexico  City  the  train  passes 
through  two  thousand  miles  of  dust !  Texas  is  terribly 
dusty,  but  Mexico  is  worse.  Yet  away  from  the  railways, 
which  naturally  run  through  flat  valleys,  there  are  some  of 
the  most  beautifully  vegetated  spots  on  earth. 

Between  Torreon  and  Mexico  City  we  crossed  the  tropic 
of  Cancer,  throucrh  which  most  of  the  line  runs  at  an 
elevation  of  from  five  to  eight  thousand  feet  above  the  sea 
level  ;  the  vegetation  became  more  tropical  hour  by  hour. 
Yet  strawberries  are  to  be  found  all  the  year  round  in 
Central  Mexico. 

We  passed  numerous  peasants  clad  in  coats  made  from 
the  grass  of  the  palm  cactus.  They  are  really  very  quaint, 
just  a  series  of  spikes  from  which  the  rain  easily  drips 
away  ;  they  are  cheap  and  warm,  and  do  not  take  long 
to  fashion.  The  native  Mexican  makes  coats,  baskets, 
combs,  anything  and  everything,  out  of  his  palm  cactus  or 
maguey  plant,  just  as  the  Finlander  makes  the  same  things, 
including  his  shoes,  out  of  birch  bark  ! 

It  was  pouring  with  rain,  on  a  horribly  windy  cold 
night,  when  I  first  entered  Mexico  City,  and  to  add  to  the 
misery  of  it  all  I  had  a  large  part  of  my  luggage  stolen — 
where  and  how  shall  not  be  stated — suffice  it  to  say  it  was 
never  recovered.  A  man  arriving  in  London  or  Paris 
without  his  dress  clothes,  or  even  a  frock  coat,  would  feel  a 


98  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

little  unhappy  ;  what  about  a  woman,  then,  who  had  lost 
her  best  silk  dresses,  and  all  her  gloves,  and  was  about  to 
make  her  bow  in  the  Paris  of  the  Western  Hemisphere  ! 

As  my  trip  to^ Santiago  was  made  on  the  latest  railway  in 
Mexico,  a  description  of  the  first  line  seems  appropriate  here. 
I  had  the  pleasure  of  meeting  the  engineer  who  laid  the 
first  railway  in  Montezuma's  land  ;  his  account  of  the 
struggles  for  its  accomplishment  was  somewhat  strange. 
Major  Robert  Gorsuch,  an  American  by  birth,  was  sent 
for  to  Mexico,  and  after  successfully  performing  several 
engineering  feats,  had  the  honour  of  opening  the  first 
railway  on  July  4th,  1857. 

"  Our  little  line  ran  from  the  city  to  the  village  of  Guada- 
lupe," he  told  me;  "it  was  a  bold  experiment,  and  one 
which  led  to  the  ope^ning  up  of  modern  Mexico." 

An  , engine  was  made  at  great  expense  in  Philadelphia, 
and  out  of  compliment  to  the  country's  Patron  Saint  a 
large  copper  plate  was  fixed  on  either  side  of  the  cab,  on 
which  the  Virgin  of  Guadalupe  was  painted.  All  devout 
Indians  felt  kindly  disposed  towards  the  new  invention  in 
consequence  of  this  dedication. 

After  being  made  in  the  States,  the  engine  and  railway 
cars  were  all  taken  to  pieces,  packed  in  boxes,  sent  by  sea  ^ 
to  Vera  Cruz,  and  then  travelled  between  two  and  three 
hundred  miles  over  the  mountains  by  the  old  Puebla  roads 
to  Mexico  City.  These  mountain  passes  are  in  places 
1 1,000  feet  high,  and  dreadful  were  the  experiences  of  those 
engaged  in  getting  the  heavy  engine  across  those  rugged 
paths.  Every  waggon  had  a  team  of  twenty-two  mules  ; 
but  whenever  the  way  was  muddy;  the  road  bad,  or  the 
ascent  particularly  steep,  two  and  sometimes  three  teams 
had  to  be  harnessed  together  in  order  to  get  along  at  all, 
for  each  waggon  contained  12,500  lbs.  of  iron!  Imagine 
sixty-six  mules  dragging  one  waggon  up  a  hill,  and  even 
then  experiencing  difficulty  in  making  progress  ! 


HOW  I    WAS    THE   FIRST  PASSENGER.  99 

At  last  everything  arrived — the  locomotive  and  four  cars 
rom  the  United  States,  the  rails  and  fastenings  from 
England.  Major  Gorsuch  managed  to  construct  his  little 
line  in  spite  of  the  revolutionary  condition  of  the  country, 
at  a  time  when  no  one  knew  to-day  if  he  would  live  to  see 
the  morrow. 

The  excitement  was  tremendous  ;  only  a  few  people  in 
Mexico  had  ever  seen  a  train.  The  President  and  all  the 
high  officials  of  the  Federal  and  Municipal  Government, 
the  Archbishop  and  other  ecclesiastical  dignitaries,  mustered 
in  full  force.  A  religious  ceremony  prefaced  the  proceed- 
ings, and  100,000  people  assembled,  riding  or  walking  in 
from  miles  around. 

For  weeks  and  months  men  arrived  from  the  surround- 
ing haciendas  (ranches) — sometimes  a  distance  of  hundreds 
of  miles — in  order  to  try  the  speed  of  their  favourite  horses 
against  that  of  the  steam  engine.  They  would  bet — no 
Mexican  can  ever  do  anything  without  betting  on  the 
result — but  alas  !  the  engine  always  won,  although  for  fun 
the  enp-ine-drivers  would  often  oive  the  horsemen  a  start, 

o  o 

and  only  open  the  throttle  and  dash  off  just  in  time  to  reach 
the  o-oal  ahead  of  their  rivals. 

"  The  iron  horse,"  said  Major  Gorsuch,  "  with  his  lungs 
of  fire  and  sinews  of  steel,  always  won." 

The  people  used  to  ride  backwards  and  forwards  in  the 
cars  for  excitement ;  when  their  money  was  exhausted  they 
pawned  a  shirt  or  a  belt  in  order  to  have  another  ride. 
They  clambered  on  to  the  roof,  and  it  was  with  the  greatest 
difficulty  they  were  kept  from  being  killed.  Even  to-day 
trouble  arises  when  new  lines  are  opened.  Although  the 
modern  Indian  may  have  heard  of  a  railway  train,,  he  seldom 
knows  what  it  really  is,  as  I  am  aware  from  the  excitement 
caused  by  the  first  sight  of  one  at  Santiago. 


7* 


lOO 


CHAPTER  VII. 

CELEBRATION    OF    THE    GREAT    SAINT    OF    GUADALUPE. 

The  Guadalupe  Festival  is  far  more  famous  in  Mexico 
than  even  a  pilgrimage  to  Lourdes  in  Europe.  At  modern 
Lourdes  one  beholds  a  strange  and  wonderful  spectacle, 
people  weak  in  body,  yet  strong  in  faith  ;  but  for  weird 
splendour  and  picturesque  devotion  we  give  the  palm  to 
ancient  Guadalupe.     What  a  scene  it  was ! 

It  is  well  known  how  at  L.ourdes,  in  1858,  the  Virgin 
appeared  to  a  young  girl  named  Bernadette,  and  after 
promising  the  girl  happiness  in  this  world,  as  well  as  in 
that  to  come,  bade  her  ask  the  priests  to  build  a  church 
near  the  spring,  where  the  sick  should  be  healed.  Several 
times  the  Virgin  appeared  to  Bernadette,  and  from  that  day 
Lourdes  became  famous. 

In  the  origin  of  the  apparition,  and  in  many  other 
ways,  the  story  of  Lourdes  strangely  resembles  that 
of  Guadalupe,  where  three  hundred  and  twenty-seven 
years  prior  to  the  appearance  at  Lourdes,  the  Mexican 
miracle  was  vouchsafed.  The  story  which  originated 
those  remarkable  pilgrimages,  held  to  the  present  day,  is 
pretty  and  romantic. 

Guadalupe,  only  a  few  miles  from  the  city  of  Mexico, 
was  formerly  a  great  Aztec  stronghold.  Up  to  the  time 
of  the  miracle  the  country  had  been  Pagan  ;  the  Aztecs 
practised  human  sacrifice  ;  Malintzi,  the  saviour  of  the 
people,   had   still   to  come,    but   after  Juan   Diego  saw  the 


\  iit^in  (,r  (nuulalupc,  patron  saint  of  .Mexico,  as  siie  appeared  miraculously  on  the 
Indian's  1  ilma,  1531.      Now  above  altar. 


{To  face  page  100. 


I 
CELEBRATION   OF   THE    GREAT   SAINT.         loi 

Virgin,  all  was  changed.   An  excellent  account  of  the  appari- 
tion was'  written  by  Fray  Augustin  de  Vetancourt  in  1672, 
Juan    Diego  was  a  peasant,   living    in  Tolpetlac.      One 
Sunday  morning  (December   9th,    1531)  his  attention  was 
attracted    by    the   sound    of   singing.      As    he    approached 
the  hill  of  Tepeyacac — now  called  Guadalupe — he  felt  the 
singing  could  be  no  other  than  that  of  angels.      He  stood 
spellbound  ;     the  music     fascinated    him  ;    the    longer     he 
listened   the    more   it  seemed    to    penetrate    his    soul.      It 
was  like   nothing   he  had   ever  heard    before,   so  tenderly 
sweet,  so  wonderfully  grand,  that   he  hardly  dared  glance 
at  the   mountain  to  see  whence  it   came.     At  last,  raising 
his  eyes  to  the  rocks  above  him,  he  beheld  a  lovely  vision, 
just  such  a    vision    as    appeared    three  centuries    later    to 
Bernadette.        He    fell    upon    his    knees,    when    the    lady, 
encircled   by  a   halo    of  light,  in   gentle  tones  bade  him  tell 
the   Bishop  it  was    her    wish    a   great    temple    should   be 
built  upon  that   hill    in    her   honour.      He   knelt  for  a  time 
in  terrified  amaze,  and  when  he  again  ventured  to  look  up, 
the  vision  had  vanished. 

The  Bishop,  Don  Juan  Zumarraga,  an  Indian  of  some 
repute,  was  incredulous  when  he  heard  Juan  Diego's  story, 
and  although  he  listened  patiently  to  what  the  man  had  to 
say,  told  him  he  must  have  corroborative  proof  before 
considering  the  matter.  Poor  Juan  went  away  disconsolate, 
and  returning  to  the  hill,  waited,  hoping  against  hope  for 
the  lady's  reappearance,  in  order  that  he  might  tell  her  how 
fruitless  had  been  his  mission.  To  his  surprise  he  suddenly 
saw  her  standing  in  front  of  a  rock,  watching  for  his  return. 
She  looked  more  beautiful  than  ever,  and  instead  of  being 
angry  at  the  Bishop's  incredulity,  vanished  as  before  after 
bidding  the   Indian  return. 

The  following  Sunday,  as  desired,  Juan  repaired  once 
more  to  the  hillside,  when  he  again  beheld  thii  vision. 
Again  she  bade  him  tell  the   Bishop  her  command  that  a 


I02  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

temple  should  be  erected  on  the  hill.  Poor  Juan  returned 
to  the  great  potentate,  and  repeated  what  he  had  s,een  and 
heard,  but  the  Bishop,  still  unconvinced,  refused  to  take  any 
steps  in  the  matter  unless  proof  of  her  supernatural  power 
were  forthcoming.  The  Indian  departed  crestfallen.  The 
Bishop's  curiosity  having  been  aroused,  however,  he  sent 
a  couple  of  servants — so  runs  the  legend — to  follow  Juan 
Diego,  and  see  what  actually  happened.  The  peons  started 
eagerly  on  their  mission,  and  all  went  well  until  ihey  reached 
the  hill  now  known  as  Guadalupe,  when  sudde^nly  the  man 
they  had  been  sent  to  watch  miraculously  disappeared  from 
view. 

The  Indian,  however,  though  invisible  to  those  who 
followed  him,  soon  found  audience  o(  the  Lady  of 
Guadalupe,  and  told  her  the  Bishop  demanded  evidence  of 
her  appearance.  She  would  not  give  it,  and  Juan  was 
leaving  her,  disconsolate,  when  she  bade  him  return  on  the 
morrow,  when  proof  should  be  forthcoming. 

Juan,  in  a  state  of  feverish  excitement  at  the  great  and 
marvellous  vision  which  had  been  vouchsafed  to  him, 
went  home,  expecting  strange  things  next  day.  Unfor- 
tunately he  found  that  his  uncle,  Juan  Bernadino,  had  been 
taken  very  ill  with  the  fever  known  to  Indians  as  cocolixtli. 
The  stricken  man  was  so  much  worse  the  next  day  Juan  dared 
not  leave  him.  The  sickness  increased,  and  the  following 
morning,  death  seeming  imminent,  the  Indian  hurried  off  to 
summon  a  confessor.  He  was  afraid  to  pass  the  spot  where 
the  Virgin  had  appeared,  so  he  sought  another  path  on  the 
eastern  side  of  the  mountain.  As  he  passed  the  hill,  how- 
ever, lo !  he  saw  the  lady  coming  towards  him,  and  heard  her 
sweet  voice  calling.  He  told  her  of  his  uncle's  illness  and 
approaching  death,  but  instantly  all  his  anxiety  was  dispelled, 
for  she  assured  him  his  uncle  was  "quite  well  again." 

Once  more  he  knelt  before  her  amazed,  and  she  bade 
him  cut  her  some   flowers.      Till  that   moment   flowers  had 


CELEBRATION   OF   THE    GREAT   SAINT.         103 

never  o-rown  on  the  barren  hill,  but,  to  the  Indian's  astonish- 
ment,  he  instantly  saw  them  blooming  all  around.  He  picked 
a  quantity,  which  she  requested  him  to  take  to  the  Bishop 
at  once  as  her  sign.  Till  he  had  done  so,  no  other  eyes 
were  to  look  upon  her  offering ;  therefore,  to  ensure  this,  he 
wrapped  his  fragrant  treasures  in  the  blanket,  or  "  tilma," 
which  every  Indian  wears,  and  set  off  once  more  for  the 
Bishop's  palace.  When  Juan  unfolded  his  tilma  before  the 
ecclesiastic,  upon  the  cloth  was  imprinted  the  face  of  the 
Viro-in  ! 

That  picture  exists  to-day,  carefully  guarded  in  the 
Cathedral  at  Guadalupe.  The  Patron  Saint  is  depicted  in  a 
blue  robe,  with  a  skirt  of  a  soft  pink  shade  ;  the  colours 
are  subdued  yet  warm.      She  has  a  halo  all  round  her. 

By  February,  1532,  a  temple  had,  as  directed,  been  built 
upon  the  spot,  and  Juan  Diego  and  his  uncle  Bernadino 
became  the  servants  of  the  Virgin. 

This  is  the  story  so  loved  by  Indian  pilgrims  when  they 
gather  together  in  thousands  every  year  to  do  honour  to 
their   Patron   Saint. 

The  Church  of  Rome  gave  permission  for  these  festivals, 
and  in  1754  a  Papal  Bull  officially  instituted  and  sanctioned 
the  1 2th  of  December  as  the  feast  day  of  the  "  Patron 
Saint  of  Mexico,  the  famous  Lady  of  Guadalupe." 

And  now  to  turn  to  the  celebration  itself.  For  days 
before  the  festival  Indians  arrive  by  train,  though  most  ot 
the  pilgrims  come  on  foot.  Many  of  them  have  to  cover 
hundreds  of  miles,  and  often  carry  all  their  worldly 
belongings  with  them. 

It  is  a  strange  and  weird  sight.  Here,  a  beggar  maid, 
accompanied  by  a  little  girl,  both  fragile  and  delicate-looking, 
who  have  tramped  on  day  by  day  to  pray  at  the  famous  shrine. 
There  an  old  Indian,  with  wrinkled  brows,  leads  a  child 
by  the  hand,  while  he  himself  is  bent  nearly  double  by 
the  weight  upon  his  back.      He  carries  blankets,    the  tiny 


I04  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

basin  in  which  to  light  his  fire,  a  few  pots  and  pans,  some 
sugar-cane  to  chew,  and  a  roll  of  matting  or  canvas 
which  will  be  supported  later  on  sticks,  to  make  a  sort  of 
umbrella-like  covering  for  his  family.  His  squaw  in  rags 
and  tatters  follows  behind,  a  baby  of  nine  or  ten  months 
old  hanging  in  a  shawl  upon  her  back.  Its  little  blue-black 
head  reaches  her  shoulders,  and  its  small  feet  appear  below 
the  blue  rebozo  (shawl),  in  which  it  seems  to  be  sitting. 
They  all  look  awfully,  hopelessly  poor  ;  the  wind  is  cold — 
as  it  so  often  is  during  December  in  Mexico  City — never- 
theless, these  people  only  wear  calico,  and  even  that  thin 
covering  is  torn  and  tattered.  Watch  them,  however ! 
They  go  up  to  a  little  booth  before  the  church  door  and 
buy  a  couple  of  candles,  one  for  the  man  and  one  for  the 
woman.  They  do  not  even  pause  to  rest  or  deposit  their 
bundles  in  their  haste  to  reach  the  shrine.  They  enter  the 
lower  church — for  there  are  two  as  at  Lourdes — and  after 
dipping  their  fingers  in  the  holy  water  and  crossing  them- 
selves— particularly  on  the  face,  which  seems  to  be  an  Indian 
characteristic — they  proceed  to  crawl  on  their  knees  up  the 
aisle  to  the  altar  rails.  They  are  only  doing  what  hundreds 
and  thousands  of  their  fellows  are  doing,  what,  in  fact, 
is  expected  of  them  at  the  Fete  of  Guadalupe. 

What  a  curious  spectacle  it  was  !  We  went  out  to  the 
shrine  a  couple  of  days  previously  to  see  the  bulk  of  the 
Indians  arriving.  Such  scenes  as  the  above  were  being 
enacted  every  moment.  Hundreds  were  already  on  the 
spot,  some  sleeping  curled  up  in  gutters  ;  others  dressing 
their  hair,  or  otherwise  employed  with  the  zoology  of 
their  raven  locks.      More  were  gambling. 

The  whole  scene  was  a  strange  anomaly.  Outside  the 
church  were  a  dozen  booths,  containing  gambling  tables, 
where  youth  and  age  were  betting  their  halfpence  or  their 
dollars.  Gambling  seems  born  in  the  Mexican,  whether  he 
be  of  Indian  or  of  Spanish  descent.      It  appears  as  essential 


CELEBRATION   OF   THE    GREAT   SAINT.         105 

to  him  as  his  dinner,  more  so  in  fact.  But  what  a  fearful 
thing  it  is — what  a  curse  to  mankind  !  Look  at  those  people's 
faces  ;  see  that  boy  gathering  up  his  silver  coins  to  go  and 
get  drunk  on  pulque.  He  has  won  more  dollars  in  a  few 
minutes  than  he  ever  saw  in  all  his  life  before,  and  his 
newly-acquired  wealth  will  be  his  ruin.  See  that  old 
woman's  shaky  hand  as  she  takes  her  cigar  from  her  mouth 
and  watches  the  roulette  ball  spin  round  and  round  ;  her 
last  cents  staked  on  the  chance.  Look  at  those  two  small 
children,  who,  instead  of  spending  the  few  centavos  given 
them  for  sugar-cane,  are  risking  them  on  this  game  of  hazard. 
The  same  anxiety,  the  same  nervousness,  is  noticeable 
among  these  poor  Indians  that  one  sees  in  the  bejewelled 
gamblers  at  Monte  Carlo  ;  but  of  the  two,  this  seemed  the 
more  horrible,  for  these  folk  had  come  on  a  pilgrimage  to 
Heaven,  yet  turned  aside  enticed  by  Hell ! 

There  were  booths  everywhere  ;  queer  pottery,  coloured 
handkerchiefs,  fruits  or  dried  meat,  baskets,  candles  for  the 
shrines,  even  bottles  of  sacred  water,  just  as  at  Lourdes,  and 
pilgrims  purchase  pictures  of  the  Virgin  to  decorate  their  huts, 
or  to  hang  above  the  sacred  altar  in  their  humble  dwellings. 

They  have  wonderful  faith.  The  only  thing  they  love 
and  dread  is  their  religion.  They  are  powerless  in  the 
hands  of  the  priests,  who  rule  them  completely  by  fear. 

The  most  interesting  part  of  the  festival  was  undoubtedly 
the  night  before  the  chief  ceremony.  Wh^n  we  reached 
the  Zocalo  or  Plaza  Mayor  in  Mexico  City  about  half-past 
six,  it  was  to  find  every  tram  to  Guadulupe  crammed  to 
overflowing.  Some  of  the  pilgrims,  who  had  arrived  late, 
were  expending  their  few  cents  in  an  electric  tram-ride 
out  to  the  famous  shrine.  After  walkino-  hundreds  of 
miles  with  shoeless  feet,  the  Indian  availed  himself  of  the 
advantages  of  modernity,  and  completed  his  journey  in  an 
electric  carriage.     Yet  another  of  the  vagaries  of  Mexico. 

Not  being  able  \o  procure  seats  in  a  tram,  we  hired  a 


io6  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

"special  car,"  which  was  fastened  on  behind  those  already 
made  up  in  train  form.  It  was  really  a  wonderful  sight 
to  see  hundreds  of  people  trudging  along  the  road  on 
foot  to  the  Guadalupe  festival  ;  rows  and  rows  of  carts  of 
every  shape  and  form,  all  heavily  laden,  crawled  along  in 
solemn  procession.  A  number  of  burros  (donkeys)  were 
ridden,  in  many  cases  pillion  fashion,  by  the  more  wealthy 
folk.  On  the  left-hand  side  was  a  series  of  shrines  where 
the  pilgrims  stopped  to  pray.  In  many  respects  that  pro- 
cession of  humanity  reminded  me  of  the  crowd  arriving  at 
Oberammergau  to  see  the  Passion  Play. 

After  half-an-hour's  run  we  reached  Guadalupe,  to  find 
the  streets  positively  alive  with  humanity.  It  was  a  perfectly 
dark  night,  and  the  lights  from  Indian  tires  shed  strange 
shadows  and  illuminations  on  the  scene.  Many  groups  were 
seated  round  small  earthenware  pots,  about  the  size  of  a 
soup-plate,  in  which  a  few  knobs  of  charcoal  were  burning. 
One  of  the  party  was  wont  to  kindle  the  tiny  flame  with  a 
fan  made  of  plaited  grass.  When  it  was  properly  ignited, 
she  would  put  her  flat  tin  on  the  top,  and  warm  tortillas  for 
the  evening  meal.  By  way  of  extra  luxury  a  little  honey 
was  spread  over  the  tortilla,  or  a  few  scraps  of  goat  meat 
rolled  inside  with  a  chilli.  The  Indians  had  the  quaintest 
way  of  illuminating  the  scene  ;  three  sticks,  a  couple  of  feet 
long,  were  made  into  a  standing  tripod,  on  the  top  of  which 
a  stone,  brick,  or  piece  of  tin  was  placed,  on  which  lay 
loosely  a  few  shreds  of  wood  which,  when  ignited,  made 
a  brilliant  blaze. 

The  Indians  were  sitting  around  on  their  heels,  some- 
times cross-legged  like  the  Arabs,  but  always  in  what 
appeared  uncomfortable  positions.  The  weird  flames  ot 
light,  the  colouring  of  the  serapes,  the  white  cotton  shirts, 
and  the  dark  skins  of  the  people,  made  a  strange  and 
wonderful  picture. 

In   front    ot     the   basilica   was   a  blaze   of    light,    all  the 


CELEBRATION    OF   THE    GREAT  SAINT.         107 

more  strange  in  the  general  gloom.  The  towers  of  the 
church  were  illuminated  from  inside  with  Bengal  lights, 
coloured  red,  white,  and  green,  to  represent  the  flag  of 
Mexico.  It  all  added  effect  to  a  remarkable  scene,  for  the 
towers  of  flame  rose  high  in  the  air,  with  the  darkness  of  night 
for  a  background,  and  below  was  that  queer  medley  of  hu- 
manity with  its  small  bonfires,  and  funny  little  trestled  lights. 

At  7  30  the  service  in  the  church  was  to  commence  ;  the 
fires  were  extinguished  a  few  minutes  before  that  hour,  bags 
and  bundles  collected,  and  into  the  sacred  edifice  the  greater 
portion  of  the  assembly  proceeded. 

Mexican  Indians  are  most  terrible  thieves  ;  such  thieves, 
in  fact,  that  they  actually  steal  amongst  themselves,  and 
thus  it  is  that  every  man,  woman  and  child  had  to  convey 
into  the  church  all  their  worldly  belongings.  These 
generally  consisted  of  a  blanket,  sombrero,  little  wooden 
tripod  for  the  fire,  perhaps  a  couple  of  pots,  and  possibly  a 
handkerchief  in  which  tortillas  were  tied  in  a  bundle.  Not 
only  did  they  take  all  their  worldly  goods  and  chattels  to 
the  service,  but  their  dogs,  or  an  occasional  parrot  accom- 
panied them,  and  that  matins  was  certainly  one  of  the 
strangest  and  most  weird  services  that  could  be  imagined. 

The  Cathedral  is  a  handsome  edifice.  It  represents  wealth 
and  splendour.  The  massive  balustrades  are  of  solid  silver  ; 
the  candelabra  hanging  from  the  ceiling  are  beautiful,  and 
on  this  occasion  some  thousands  of  candles  shed  a  lurid 
glow  on  all  around.  The  priests  in  gorgeous  robes,  the 
decorations  of  flowers  and  palms,  the  quantities  of  incense 
giving  cloud-like  mysticism  to  the  scene,  told  of  wealth 
unbounded,  while  kneeling  upon  the  stone  flags  in  various 
stages  of  poverty  and  abject  rags  were  the  Indians.  Oh, 
how  poor  they  were  ! 

We  noticed  that  these  people  invariably  laid  their  hats 
upon  the  stones,  and  the  brim  being  eight  or  ten  inches 
wide,   they   knelt   upon   that,    evidently   preferring  the   soft  . 


io8  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

plaited  straw  or  felt  to  the  hard  flags.  Many  of  them 
took  their  bundles  off  their  backs,  and  calmly  placed  them 
in  front,  settled  their  dog  beside  them,  and  having  prepared 
for  their  comfort  during  the  service,  proceeded  to  cross 
themselves,  and  begin  their  devotions. 

It  was  certainly  a  wonderful  sight  ;  the  enthusiasm  of 
these  people  was  extraordinary.  Rags  and  religion  were 
on  every  side.  Some  folk  said  their  prayers  with  their 
arms  outstretched,  evidently  an  extra  penance.  Others 
crept  up  to  the  chief  altar  upon  their  hands  and  knees. 
But  the  absorption  and  reverence  of  all  was  marvellous. 
Amongst  them  were  some  wonderful  types  of  Indians — 
exactly  the  class  one  sees  in  picture  books — dark  of  skin, 
fine  of  profile,  and  yet  with  a  sort  of  wicked  devilment  about 
them  that  denoted  ill.  Many  of  the  women  wore  the  old 
Indian  dress  consisting  of  two  articles,  a  sort  of  scarf  used 
for  a  petticoat  wrapt  round  the  body,  and  tied  in  a  knot 
at  the  side,  leaving  an  opening  through  which  the  limbs 
could  be  seen,  and  a  square  kind  of  cloth  with  a  hole  in  the 
middle  (called  gaban  or  jorongo)  through  which  they  pass 
the  head.  This  body  covering,  closely  resembling  a  towel, 
simply  hangs  down  betore  and  behind,  leaving  the  arms 
bare,  and  as  it  is  not  fastened  in  at  the  waist,  the  body 
can  usually  be  seen.  It  was  hardly  a  sufficient  covering 
for  a  cold  night  !  Yet  these  poor  tatters  are  all  the  people 
possess. 

Tied  in  a  bundle  on  her  back,  every  woman  present  had 
a  baby.  The  number  of  babies  at  Guadalupe  seemed 
extraordinary.  Every  female,  whatever  her  age,  appeared 
to  havQ  one  slung  on  before  or  hung  on  behind  her,  and, 
as  if  that  were  not  enough  to  carry  for  numbers  of  miles,  she 
generally  had  bundles  two  or  three  times  the  size  of  the 
child  added  to  her  burden.  Of  course,  the  infants  cried  ;  as 
an  accompaniment  to  the  music  there  arose  a  constant 
wail  from  babyhood   in   Church. 


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CELEBRATION   OF   THE    GREAT  SAINT.         109 

The  death  rate  among  these  children  is  exceedingly- 
high,  as  was  mentioned  in  the  previous  chapter,  but  that  is 
not  a  thing  the  Mexican  Indian  much  regrets,  for  he 
believes  that  if  a  child  die  in  its  infancy  it  goes  straight 
to  Heaven,  and  therefore  he  (the  father)  is  free  from 
all  responsibility  ;  whereas,  if  it  live  to  grow  up,  and  then 
do  anything  wrong,  he,  as  the  parent,  is  to  blame. 
Therefore,  apparently,  they  have  a  way  of  looking  upon 
infant  mortality  as  a  sort  of  blessing,  and  more  than  half 
of  these  wretched  children  die  in  their  youth  to  become 
angels.  When  a  child  expires  the  friends  are  invited  to 
come  and  see  the  baby  angel,  and  great  are  the  rejoicings. 
So  little  do  they  value  child  life  that  it  is  no  uncommon 
thing  to  see  a  woman  go  marketing  with  a  few  bundles 
in  one  arm,  and  a  baby's  coffin  in  the  other.  It  is  dead  ! 
God  rest  its  soul  !  and  there  the  matter  ends. 

In  the  Church,  however,  the  members  of  the  congrega- 
tion were  moved  to  the  depths  of  their  souls  by  the  music, 
light,  grandeur  and  comfort  of  their  religion.  Never  have 
we  seen  such  devotion,  such  utter  abandonment  of  self, 
such  awe-inspired  adoration.      One  looked  and  marvelled. 

After  the  service  was  over,  the  Church  soon  emptied. 
With  solemn  pomp  a  little  blind  was  dropped  over  the 
famous  picture  of  the  Virgin  of  Guadalupe,  on  which 
miraculous  painting,  but  a  moment  previously,  the  glow  of 
innumerable  candles  had  fallen.  The  crown  of  jewels 
ceased  to  shine  and  sparkle ;  the  solemn  chants  of  the 
priests  were  hushed  ;  the  faithful  knelt  no  longer  on  the 
bare  stone  flags.      Night  had  spread  her  ebon  wings. 

In  former  days,  paintings  representing  this  Virgin  depicted 
her  wearing  a  diadem,  but  the  later  reproductions  denote 
the  famous  impression  on  the  "  tilma  "  as  crownless.  And 
thus  it  came  about,  when  the  Church  was  restored  a  few  years 
ago,  that  the  ladies  of  Mexico  subscribed  large  sums  in 
money  and  jewels  to  have  a  real  crown  made  to  hang  above 


no  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

the  picture  in  the  Church,  and  on  such  famous  days  as  the 
Feast  of  Guadalupe,  the  jewelled  diadem  hangs  above 
the  sacred  tilma  itself  The  picture  thereon  has  been  the 
subject  of  much  discussion.  Artists  have  examined  it,  but 
no  one  apparently  knows  whether  the  miraculous  Virgin  is 
painted,  if  so  what  pigments  were  used,  or  how  applied.  It 
remains  a  mystery. 

The  service  over,  boys  with  high  double  steps  went  from 
candelabra  to  candelabra  to  put  out  the  lights,  while 
another  individual  rattled  a  huge  bunch  of  keys  as  he 
walked  behind  the  outgoing  multitude  to  hurry  them  from 
the  edifice.  We  stayed  behind  until  the  place  was  clear, 
so  that  probably  ten  minutes  elapsed  between  the  exit  of 
the  first  individual  and  our  own  departure.  What  a  scene 
presented  itself  as  we  left  the  Church  door  ! 

Thousands  and  thousands  of  Indians  had  already  sought 
their  rest,  but  not  on  spring  mattresses  or  feather  beds ! 
They  were  simply  lying  about  in  a  heterogeneous  mass. 
Men,  women,  children,  dogs,  bundles,  hats — all  mixed  and 
huddled  together.  They  spread  over  the  stone  Hags  all 
round  the  church,  in  the  great  open  square,  in  the  market 
hall,  up  the  steps  leading  to  the  higher  Church,  and  around 
the  sacred  wall.  Many  of  them  had  not  even  a  blanket, 
but  just  lay  huddled  upon  the  ground  like  round  balls, 
and  were  apparently  asleep  in  a  few  moments.  Others, 
possessed  of  "  sarapes  "  or  blankets,  rolled  their  head  com- 
pletely up  in  the  same,  and  then  settled  down  for  the 
night,  leaving  their  bodies  from  the  waist  downwards — their 
legs,  ankles  and  feet  bare — entirely  exposed,  evidently 
thinking  that  if  their  heads  were  covered  they  would  be 
quite  comfortable.  The  Indian,  like  the  ostrich,  buries  his 
head  and  is  content  ;  there  was  not  an  inch  to  spare 
between  these  people,  and  yet  we  saw  a  man,  who  had 
obviously  been  forgotten  when  the  rest  of  the  family  settled 
down  to  sleep,  coming  with  a  dim  light  in  his  hand  to  look 


CELEBRATION   OF   THE    GREAT   SAINT.         in 

for  his  friends.  Suddenly  he  recognised  them  by  a  shawl 
or  bundle,  and  stepping  over  fifty  slumbering  mortals, 
managed  to  get  his  foot  squeezed  into  a  little  space  near 
his  party  ;  gradually  he  pushed  them  aside,  finally  settled 
down,  and  to  our  amazement  wriggled  himself  in,  until  when 
we  left  him,  he  was  comfortably  asleep  on  a  spot  where  we 
thought  there  was  no  room  for  even  a  fly  to  gain  admittance. 
No  doubt  this  mode  of  procedure  keeps  them  warm,  and 
hence  its  origin  ;  but  it  was  a  curious  spectacle.  It  seemed 
as  if  an  ordinary  Indian  about  five  feet  high  could  sleep  in 
a  space  two  feet  square.  He  doubles  his  knees  under  his 
nose,  rolls  himself  into  a  bundle  something  like  a  sleeping 
dog,  and  as  he  is  in  close  proximity  to  his  neighbour,  we 
presume  he  does  not  kick,  or  some  one  would  inevitably 
be  hurt. 

Men  lingered  long  around  the  gambling  booths.  They 
had  just  come  out  of  the  Church,  their  rosaries  were  hardly 
back  in  their  pockets,  the  holy  water  was  barely  dry  upon 
their  temples,  but  vice  awaited  them.  The  lights  attracted, 
the  clink  of  the  dice  enticed,  and  straight  from  their  knees 
and  their  prayers  they  went  off  to  gamble  and  play  at 
games  ot  chance.  It  seemed  horrible.  Those  who  won 
departed  to  buy  strong  drink,  and  when  intoxicated  re- 
turned to  play  again.  Those  who  lost  went  to  the  pawn 
shop  to  pledge  their  hat  or  blanket,  returning  to  again 
resume  their  flirt  with  fortune. 

Gradually  the  lights  were  extinguished  one  by  one,  the 
murmur  of  voices  ceased,  the  darkness  of  night  enveloped 
the  scene,  a  chilliness  filled  the  air,  and  utter  silence 
reigned. 

The  next  morning  we  struggled  back  to  Guadalupe  by 
nine  o'clock,  at  which  hour  the  chief  mass  began,  but  cts 
more  pilgrims  had  been  coming  in  all  through  the  night,  the 
thousands  already  assembled  were  augmented  by  many 
thousands  more,  and  the  struggle  we  had  to  get  into  the 


112  ^        -       MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

church  was  terrible  ;  yet  women  with  babies  tied  to  their 
backs  managed  to  squeeze  through  that  dense  crowd  ;  the 
babies  screamed,  the  dogs  yelped,  but  still  the  Mexican- 
Indian  pushed  his  way  in,  until  an  enormous  concourse  filled 
every  available  inch  of  the  building.  It  seemed  as  if  we 
might  all  be  burnt  to  death,  for  every  single  person  carried  a 
lighted  candle.  No  matter  how  poor,  the  Indian  feels  it 
his  duty  to  buy  a  candle  as  an  offering  to  the  Sacred  Lady 
of  Guadalupe.  The  grease  was  dropping  in  every  direc- 
tion. Some  of  the  pilgrims  were  kneeling,  others  were 
standing,  but  whichever  position  they  squeezed  into,  thus 
they  had  to  remain,  as  there  was  neither  room  to  get  down 
on  to  their  knees,  or  to  rise  from  them  until  the  mass 
was  ended.  This  was  the  first  of  a  series  of  services 
which  lasted  all  through  the  day.  By  these  repeated 
masses  the  Indians — said  to  number  fifteen  br  twenty 
thousand — were  all  able  to  attend  worship  within  the  sacred 
edifice,  and  pay  their  homage  to  the  patron  saint  of  Mexico. 

Although  profoundly  religious  in  the  church  itself,  the 
outside  element  inclined  to  be  rowdy  ;  among  other  things 
some  hundred  boys,  no  doubt  of  Indian  extraction  but 
chiefly  from  the  town,  dressed  up  in  queer  paint  and  ancient 
feathers,  were  dancing  for  centavos.  They  sang  a  curious 
diroe  which  harmonised  well  with  the  religious  element  : 
but  otherwise  a  somewhat  theatrical  effect  was  produced 
which,  like  the  round-abouts,  spoiled  the  sacred  nature  of 
the   proceedings.  ^ 

At  the  back  of  the  principal  church-  is  a  strange  stair- 
way, leading  to  the  Chapel  on  the  Hill  (Capilla  del 
Cerrito).  This  ascent  is  composed  of  very  wide  stone 
steps,  of  which  there  are  some  hundreds,  that  conduct 
from  the  Chapel  of  the  Well  containing  the  sacred  water, 
at  the  bottom  of  the  hill,  to  the  small  church  on  the 
top.  It  is  up  these  steps  devout  pilgrims  crawl  on 
their  hands  and   knees.      There  are  several  little  shrines  in 


Guadalupe  pilgrims  returning  from  the  Upper  Church.      Walls  crooked  from  earthquakes. 


Modern  Indians  in  old  Indian  dress. 


To  face  page  112. 


CELEBRATION  OF   THE    GREAT  SAINT.         113 

the  walls  ;  but  the  most  curious  object  of  all  is  the  monu- 
ment known  as  the  Stone  Sails.  That  sails  should  be 
composed  of  stone  is  indeed  a  paradox  ;  but  such  is  the 
case.  They  stand  about  30  or  40  feet  high,  and  are  really 
three  sails — one  on  the  top  of  the  other — carved  in  solid 
stone.  They  are  not  particularly  picturesque,  but  the 
position  in  which  they  are  placed  is  so  prominent  that  they 
can  be  seen  for  miles  around.  The  story  of  these  sails, 
which  were  a  votive  offering,  is  as  follows  : — 

Some  sailors,  who  were  overtaken  by  a  terrible  storm, 
and,  on  the  verge  of  shipwreck,  offered  up  a  prayer  to  the 
Lady  of  Guadalupe  for  preservation.  They  vowed  that  if 
this  miracle  was  vouchsafed,  they  would  take  the  mast  of 
their  ship  and  set  it  up  as  a  votive  offering  on  the  hill 
which  is  sacred  to  her  memory.  The  ship  and  her  crew 
were  saved,  and  the  men  carried  out  their  promise  ;  but  so 
miraculous  was  their  escape  that  money  was  subscribed  to 
erect  something  of  a  more  lasting  nature  than  a  wooden 
mast,  and  accordingly  these  strange-looking  Stone  Sails 
were  put  up  in  token  of  gratitude,  and  as  evidence  of  the 
wonderful   power  of  the  Sacred   Lady, 

From  a  little  distance  the  sails  appear  so  real  that  it  seems 
as  if  whitish-grey  canvas  were  actually  spread  out  upon 
the  mast  of  a  ship,  and  one  wonders  how  anything  so  high 
and  so  thin  in  stone — a  foot  beinsf  about  the  thickness — 
can  stand  alone.  One  finds,  however,  on  nearer  inspection 
that  the  sails  have  a  stronof  eranite  buttress  as  a  brace. 

At  the  bottom  of  the  stair  is  the  spring,  over  which 
a  handsome  buildino-  has  been  erected.  This  is  besieQ-ed 
during  the  Pilgrims'  week.  The  Indians  all  want  to 
drink  the  sacred  water,  and  everyone  is  anxious  to  procure 
some  to  take  home.  They  therefore  buy  old  bottles 
from  people  sitting  at  the  edge  of  the  gutter,  with  odds 
and  ends  of  glass  upon  the  roadway  before  them,  and 
believe  the   bottle  adds   to  the   efficacy  of  the  water.     The 


114  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

contents  cost  nothing  but  the  trouble  of  fetching,  the  bottle 
probably  is  worth  two  to  three  centavos.  When  filled, 
they  are  kept  safe  by  means  of  the  strangest  devices. 
The  men  generally  put  them  inside  their  shirt  ;  but,  as 
the  cotton  bodice  of  a  woman  is  merely  a  square  with  a 
hole  in  it,  and  the  ends  hang  down,  she  has  no  means  ot 
securing  her  treasure  in  that  way.  She  therefore  unpacks 
her  baby,  and  ties  up  the  precious  bottle  in  the  blue  rag  in 
company  with  her  offspring. 

There  is  no  doubt  about  it  that  the  feast  day  of  the  Lady 
of  Guadalupe  means  to  the  Mexican  even  more  than  the 
Lourdes  pilgrimage  to  the  European.  It  is  all  wonderful  ; 
inspiring  in  some  respects,  religious  in  others,  dramatic, 
and  extremely  sad.  It  shows  the  enormous  strength  of  the 
Roman  Catholic  religion,  and  yet  at  the  same  time  its  want 
of  power  in  not  putting  a  stop  to  the  claptrap,  cheap-jack 
element  surrounding  the  sacred  proceedings. 

By  midnight  on  the  12th  December  everything  was  over, 
and  that  vast  multitude  had  started  on  its  homeward 
journey,  even  to  the  borders  of  Texas,  a  thousand  miles 
and  more  distant.  It  once  happened  that  a  husband  and 
his  wife  and  son  were  travelling  by  an  excursion  train  to 
Guadalupe.  The  man  died  on  the  way,  but  the  woman 
and  youth  declining  to  be  deterred  from  attending  the 
festival,  left  him  behind  at  a  station  for  burial.  Such  a 
small  thing  as  the  death  of  a  husband  could  not  be  permitted 
to  interfere  with  the  celebration  of  their  Sacred  Lady ! 

As  at  Lourdes,  there  are  strange  and  wonderful  pictures 
upon  the  walls  at  Guadalupe,  more  strange  because  they  are 
the  work  of  Indians,  and  more  wonderful  because  in  many 
instances  they  are  painted  by  people  without  any  education 
whatever,  some  of  them  being  two  and  three  centuries  old. 
Here  is  a  man  depicted  carried  through  the  desert  by  a  lion  ; 
he  died  this  way,  and  this  extraordinary  hieroglyphic  is  an 
offering  for  his  soul.     There  is  a  youth   thrown   out   of   a 


CELEBRATION  OF   THE    GREAT  SAINT.         115 

window,  murder  no  doubt,  and  beside  it  is  the  picture 
of  an  engine  running  over  a  woman's  body,  suicide  perhaps. 
A  few  of  these  illustrations  represent  people  dying  in  bed, 
but  a  bed  is  so  little  known  that  it  rarely  appears,  and  when 
it  does  is  somewhat  remarkable  in  drawing  !  A  child 
being  devoured  by  some  wild  beast,  a  fire  with  legs  sticking 
out  of  the  flames,  anything  and  everything  serves  for  a 
subject,  and  each  picture  is  more  marvellous  than  the  last. 

Then  again,  in  the  church  are  several  black  cloth  panels 
about  8  feet  by  3,  framed,  on  which  hang  rows,  as  tightly 
packed  as  possible,  of  silver  arms,  legs,  hands  or  feet,  thank- 
offerings  for  mercies  vouchsafed.  They  are  only  about 
two  inches  long,  and  many  hundreds  cover  each  panel. 

Votive  offerings  are  to  be  found  in  all  the  churches.  A 
cow,  horse,  donkey,  pig,  lizard,  scorpion,  or  a  saddle.  The 
cow  has  been  offered  in  gratitude  for  the  advent  of  a  fine 
calf,  the  pig  for  having  produced  a  good  litter,  the  horse 
because  some  favourite  steed  has  been  saved  from  death  ; 
the  scorpion  for  restored  health  after  a  terrible  bite.  In 
short,  these  emblems  are  without  end,  and  their  meanings 
are  not  difficult  to  understand. 

The  Shrine  of  the  Lady  of  Guadalupe  is  the  Holiest  in 
all  Mexico.  Pilgrims  are  to  be  found  there  at  their  devo- 
tions from  year's  end  to  year's  end  ;  but  the  most  interest- 
ing and  strange  pilgrimage  to  our  mind  occurred  the  night 
before  December  12th,  when  all  was  wrapt  in  mystery. 
That  scene  was  something  to  be  remembered  ;  nothing  in 
Rome  or  Venice  at  Eastertide,  at  Lourdes  or  Oberam- 
mergau,  or  any  other  European  spot,  ever  appeared  so 
picturesque,  so  wild  and  so  romantic,  as  the  evening  service 
at  Guadalupe  and  the  sleeping  worshippers  outside  the 
sacred  building. 


ii6 


CHAPTER   VIII. 

GENERAL    TORFIRIO    DIAZ,    PRESIDENT    OF    MEXICO. 

I  WENT  to  Mexico  inspired  with  profound  respect  and 
admiration  for  General  Porfirio  Diaz,  a  man  who 
ascended  a  throne — so  to  speak — when  revolution  was  in 
the  air,  murder  of  daily  occurrence,  property  unsafe, 
and  universal  riot  reigned  supreme.  It  was  not,  how- 
ever, until  I  had  met  him  and  spent  some  time  in  his  com- 
pany, not  until  I  had  lived  several  months  in  Mexico, 
that  I  fully  realised  the  extraordinary  ability  of  its 
President. 

That  Porfirio  Diaz  was  the  greatest  man  of  the 
nineteeth  century  may  seem  a  strong  assertion,  but  a  glance, 
even  one  so  cursory  as  this  must  be,  will  prove  the  fact. 
His  life  has  been  a  long  romance  ;  an  early  struggle  for 
existence,  war  and  strife,  wounds  so  severe  that  many 
times  death  seemed  imminent  ;  imprisonment,  dangerous 
escapes,  military  success,  and  then  a  Presidentship — all 
these  events  have  followed  in  quick  succession  in  the 
career  of  this  extraordinary  individual. 

Diaz  was  born  September  15th,  1830,  so  that  when  I  first 
saw  him  he  was  seventy,  but  looked  years  younger. 

His  position  is  absolutely  unique  in  the  world's 
history,  for  although  President  of  a  Republic,  he  has 
reigned  for  over  twenty  years.  His  will  is  all  powerful,  as 
great,  in  fact,  as  that  of  a  Tsar  and   Pope  combined.      He 


General  Porfirio  Diaz,  President  of  Mexico. 


To  face  page  ii6. 


GENERAL   PORE  I  RIO   DIAZ.  117 

is  a  monarchical  yet  democratic  ruler.  He  controls  millions 
of  people  with  a  hand  of  iron,  still  they  love  him.  He  is 
a  despot,  but  at  the  same  time  leads  the  unassuming  life  of 
a  private  gentleman.  He  walks  alone  in  the  streets,  cares 
nothing  for  pomp  in  his  daily  existence,  and  plays  the  role 
of  a  simple  home-loving  citizen  to  perfection. 

Althouofh  of  Indian  descent — and  to  this  fact  he 
probably  owes  that  sympathy  with  his  people  which 
makes  him  understand  their  character  so  well,  and  has 
given  him  so  much  power — he  is  also  descended  from 
the  Spaniards  who  left  their  mother  country  in  the 
early  years  of  the  conquest  of  Mexico  by  Cortes. 

On  his  father's  side  he  has  p-ood  ancestrv,  and  his 
grandmother  was  an  Indian  woman  of  Miztecas  tribe, 
one  of  the  finest  peoples  of  Mexico. 

The  General's  father  kept  a  little  inn  at  Oaxaca 
(pronounced  O-ah-hack-ah)  in  Southern  Mexico,  and  here 
the  President  and  six  other  children  were  born  ;  three  years 
after  the  birth  of  Porfirio  his  father  died  of  cholera,  and  the 
mother  left  with  her  young  family  and  limited  means 
to  battle  with  the  world.  The  daily  struggle  to  provide 
food  and  clothing  for  her  children  was  great  ;  but,  being 
a  brave,  clever  woman,  she  succeeded  admirably. 

Until  he  was  seven  years  old,  Porfirio  went  to  the 
village  primary  school,  and  at  fourteen  joined  the  free 
school  belonging  to  the  Roman  Catholic  priests,  with 
the  intention  of  entering  the  Church  later  on.  His 
education  was  provided  free,  but  as  he  grew  older,  being  of 
an  independent  spirit,  he  earned  a  small  income  by  teaching, 
with  a  portion  of  which  money  he  was  able  to  pay 
for  more  advanced  learning  for  himself  That  the  boy 
is  father  to  the  man,  was  indeed  proved  in  his  early 
career.  Young  Diaz  from  the  first  showed  his  ability 
of  imparting  knowledge,  and  at  the  same  time  gaining  it. 
This  power  has  stood  him  in  good  stead  through  life. 


ii8  MEXICO  AS  I  SAW  IT. 

The  priests  found  that  in  Porfirio  Diaz  they  had  to 
do  with  no  ordinary  lad.  They  realised  he  might  prove 
of  service  to  the  Church,  and  feeling  that  their  influence, 
which  up  to  then  had  been  practically  unbounded, 
seemed  a  little  less  secure,  they  offered  him  a  scholarship 
when  he  was  nineteen  years  of  age,  and  proposed  also 
to  confer  a  minor  ecclesiastical  order  upon  him.  He 
thanked  them,  but  refused.  All  idea  of  entering  the 
Church  was  over.  Circumstances  and  learning  had 
weaned  him  from  his  first  intention  of  taking  Holy 
orders,  and  he  decided  rather  to  be  a  soldier  and  fight 
for  his  country. 

He  felt  Mexico  wanted  strong  men  ;  he  knew  revo- 
lution must  be  stamped  out  if  a  land  was  ever  to  be 
successful. 

Almost  side  by  side  with  Porfirio  Diaz,  Benito  Juarez 
(pronounced  Huarez)  had  grown  up.  These  two  men, 
so  nearly  of  an  age,  eventually  became  deadly  enemies. 
Both  were  Presidents  of  Mexico,  and  to  these  two 
wonderful  personalities  Mexico  owes  her  strength  to-day. 

As  a  bare-footed  Indian  lad  Juarez  had  originally  been 
a  servant  in  a  monastery  ;  but  on  finding  that  he  possessed 
a  brilliant  intellect,  the  priests  educated  him  to  be  a 
"pillar  of  the  Church."  He  loved  learning,  studied 
theology,  and  read  ecclesiastical  history.  A  keen  scholar 
and  deep  thinker,  he  worked  on  and  on  until,  like  Diaz, 
he  saw  that  a  civil  power  and  not  a  clerical  body  must 
govern  a  country. 

Thus  it  came  about  that  this  same  Juarez,  brought 
up  among  priests  to  be  their  prop,  turned  against  them, 
and  with  a  Herculean  stroke  overthrew  the  Roman 
Catholic  sway  in  Mexico.  'Tis  a  strange  history  which 
is  unfolded  in  the  lives  of  these  two  men.  Their  up- 
bringing was  somewhat  identical,  their  religious  inclinations 
similar,   yet   they  finally   became   rivals,    and    while   Juarez 


GENERAL   P  ORE  I  RIO   DIAZ.  119 

began    the    evolution    of  Mexico,   when    he  overthrew   the 
Catholic  Church,  Diaz  completed  it  by  military  discipline. 

Juarez'  action  was  a  remarkable  feat,  for  it  meant  far 
more  than  at  first  appears.  Two-thirds  of  the  wealth  of 
the  country  was  in  the  hands  of  the  priests  ;  the  entire 
destiny  of  the  land  was  under  their  control.  They  could 
make,  or  mar,  a  revolution,  and  they  frequently  did  so 
for  the  benefit  of  their  monasteries  and  churches. 
Every  hacienda  or  farm  in  the  country  had  to  render 
a  tenth  of  its  produce  in  tithes.  The  Church,  full  of 
corruption,  reigned  supreme  ;  the  people  feared  the  priests, 
but  submitted.  Mexico  was  completely  under  their  sw^ay  ; 
her  very  life-blood  was  sucked  by  them.  She  was  paralyzed 
mentally  and  morally.  The  strength  of  the  Catholic  faith 
was  immense  ;  but  the  foundation  was  rotten  ;  Juarez  knew 
that,  and  believed  in  his  own  power,  and  the  cause  for  which 
he  was  fighting. 

He  was  a  great  man.     What  did  he  do  ? 

He  simply  overturned  the  Catholic  Church  ;  he  destroyed 
its  vast  influence  by  confiscating  its  wealth,  for  by  bribes 
had  revolutions  hitherto  been  controlled  and  men's  mouths 
closed.  The  beginning  of  Mexico's  prosperity  undoubtedly 
commenced  with  Juarez'  masterful  overthrow  of  the  Catholic 
supremacy. 

Since  his  day,  no  priest  or  nun  has  been  allowed  to  walk 
in  the  streets  clothed  in  the  o-arb  of  the  Church,  and  all 
monasteries  and  similar  ecclesiastical  bodies  have  been 
swept  away. 

Up  to  that  time  the  country  was  riddled  with  monasteries 
and  convents.  One  of  the  largest  of  the  former,  belonging 
to  the  Franciscan  brotherhood  in  Mexico  City,  was  over- 
thrown in  the  memory  of  many  persons  still  living.  At 
twelve  o'clock  one  night  Juarez  and  his  soldiers  entered  the 
building  and  took  possession  ;  the  monks — hundreds  of 
them — were  made  prisoners.      Great  was  the  consternation 


I20  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

next  morning  when  the  news  became  known.  The  ladies 
of  the  town,  arrayed  in  black,  marched  round  the  monastery, 
solemnly  cursing  men  who  could  do  such  deeds,  or  prayed 
at  street  corners  for  the  good  fathers  of  the  Church.  This 
old  monastery  is  now  a  hotel  ;  most  of  the  convents  nowa 
days  are  hotels,  schools,   or  public  buildings. 

Juarez  was  elected  President  in  1862,  and  a  year  later 
the  religious  orders  were  suppressed.  The  French  invaded 
the  country  in  1863,  and  in  June,  1864,  Maximilian  was 
crowned  Emperor.  The  following  year  the  latter  published 
a  decree  declaring  all  persons  in  arms  against  the  Imperial 
Government  to  be  bandits,  who  would  be  shot.  Several 
people  accordingly  suffered  death.  It  was  at  this  juncture 
the  United  States  protested  against  a  French  army  in 
Mexico,  and  sent  a  despatch  to  that  effect  to  Napoleon  III. 
Troubles  ensued,  till  in  1866  Napoleon  withdrew  his 
support  from  Maximilian,  and  a  few  months  later  ordered 
the  evacuation  by  French  troops,  who  were  all  recalled  by 
February,  1867.  About  this  period  Porfirio  Diaz  began 
to  rise,  but  for  a  moment  we  must  go  back. 

As  we  have  seen,  Juarez,  who  preceded  Diaz  by  only  a 
few  years,  was  an  able  man.  Had  it  not  been  for  Juarez, 
Diaz  would  probably  never  have  succeeded  as  he  has  done. 
That  overthrow  of  the  Church  was  a  masterly  act,  which 
paved  the  way  for  future  developments.    Juarez  died  in  1872. 

Young  Diaz,  after  refusing  all  priestly  aid,  as  has  been 
said,  studied  law  for  a  time.  In  the  year  1853  Santa  Anna 
was  Dictator,  and  Diaz,  not  approving  of  his  methods  of 
proceeding,  voted  against  him  ;  for  this  an  order  for  arrest 
was  issued  arainst  Diaz,  who  had  to  flee.  It  was  then,  at 
the  age  of  twenty-three,  he  entered  on  his  military  career. 

Santa  Anna  was  defeated,  and  the  Liberal  Government 
under  Juarez  came  into  power. 

Those  were  exciting  days  for  young  Diaz.  He  was 
wounded  many  times  ;  on  one  occasion  he  carried  a  ball  in 


GENERAL   PORFIRIO   DIAZ.  121 

his  body  for  several  months  before  it  could  be  extracted  ; 
but  surely,  though  slowly,  he  acquired  military  rank,  gained 
vast  experience  in  practical  soldiering,  grew  strong  and 
healthy,  learnt  how  to  submit  to  a  commander,  and  finally 
how  to  command. 

It  is  needless  to  enumerate  the  small  battles  that  filled 
those  years  ;  suffice  it  '  to  say  Diaz  rose  steadily  and 
honourably  to  the  position  of  General. 

Mexico,  with  her  fifteen  millions  of  people,  was  in  a 
terrible  condition.  One  hundred  and  fifty  different  languages 
and  dialects  were  spoken  by  the  various  Indian  tribes. 
There  had  been  fifty-two  Presidents,  Dictators,  and  Em- 
perors in  fifty-nine  years,  and  disorder  and  revolution 
prevailed  from  end  to  end  of  the  land. 

The  United  States,  France  and  Maximilian,  Juarez  against 
the  Church,  all  were  at  war  with  one  another.  The  country 
was  heavily  in  debt,  and  probably  no  land  has  ever  been  less 
safe  for  human  life,  or  more  unsettled  than  Mexico  about  the 
middle  of  the  nineteenth  century.  After  the  French  troops 
left,  the  power  of  Diaz  began  to  assert  itself  A  month  or 
two  later  he  captured  the  cities  of  Puebla  and  San  Lorenzo. 

Now  came  the  crucial  moment  in  the  career  of  General 
Diaz.  He  had  been  fighting  for  many  years,  he  knew 
every  mile  of  the  country  ;  he  had  ridden  through  the 
mountains  for  weeks  at  a  time,  and  felt  the  temper  of  the 
people.  Chaos  reigned  ;  excitement  was  in  the  air.  Every 
hand  was  raised  against  his  fellow.  Law  and  order  were 
unknown,  the  country  was  devastated  by  battle  and  murder. 
Many  had  tried  to  control  the  populace  and  failed.  Fifty- 
two  men  in  fifty-nine  years  had  not  succeeded  in  their 
attempts  to  put  down  disorder,  a  fact  that  spoke  for  itself 
Was  any  man  strong  enough  to  combat  such  a  state  of  affairs  ? 

Two  days  after  the  execution  of  Maximilian  (June,  1867), 
General  Diaz  triumphantly  entered  the  City  of  Mexico. 
This  was    the    turning    point    in    his   career ;    he  was   not 


122  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

elected  President  for  several  years,  but  he  was  daily  gaining 
ground  everywhere. 

In  1876 — nine  years  after  the  death  of  Maximilian,  and 
just  one  hundred  years  after  the  Declaration  of  Independence 
in  the  United  States — General  Porfirio  Diaz  rode  again 
into  the  City,  this  time  at  the  head  of  the  Revolutionary 
army,  and  shortly  afterwards  was  proclaimed  President. 

Thus  he  started  a  new  rule  and  a  new  life  for  old  Mexico, 
the  birth — so  to  speak — of  modern  Mexico,  of  which  he 
may  well  be  proud. 

At  the  time  of  his  entry,  Lerdo  was  acting  as  a  sort  of 
Vice-President  to  Juarez.  Diaz  had  always  failed  in  his 
endeavours  to  overthrow  his  rival  Juarez,  but  Lerdo  was  a 
very  different  man,  for,  although  highly  educated,  he  was 
lazy  ;  he  was  neither  a  soldier  nor  a  diplomatist,  and  thus 
it  was  that  Diaz,  at  last  successful,  realised  what  had  been 
his  dream  for  years. 

The  General  stationed  his  army  outside  the  town  by 
Guadalupe,  of  pilgrimage  fame,  and  when  all  was  ready 
marched  boldly  into  Mexico  City.  Many  persons  have 
described  that  scene  to  me.  General  Diaz,  well-mounted, 
sitting  erect,  his  head  raised  high,  with  a  look  of  determina- 
tion on  his  face,  a  sort  of  "do  or  die  "  expression.  He  was 
dressed  in  his  General's  uniform,  and  was  followed  by  a 
large  part  of  his  Revolutionary  army.  The  crowd  cheered  ; 
the  crowd  hissed  ;  the  multitude  fought  amongst  them- 
selves, but  on  he  rode,  only  pressing  his  lips  closer 
together.  His  entry  was  so  powerful,  so  masterful,  that 
many  who  had  previously  been  against  him  were  hyp- 
notised by  the  manner  of  the  man,  and  from  that  moment 
became  his  devoted  adherents.  Thus  on  November  23, 
1876,  General  Diaz  rode  up  to  the  Palace  where  he 
established  himself,  practically  for  life  ! 

He  ordered  Congress  to  be  dissolved.  A  new 
election  took  place.      He  was  elected  President ;  that   was 


GENERAL   PORE  I  RIO   DIAZ.  123 

a  red-letter  day  for  Mexico,  and  the  first  step  towards 
her  present  ascendancy. 

The  new  President  soon  swept  out  General  Lerdo's  troops  ; 
he  shot  outlaws,  deserters  and  rioters  wholesale,  and  began 
his  military  sway  with  an  iron  hand,  the  only  possible  mode 
of  governing  such  a  country.  He  knew  his  people,  was 
he  not  one  of  them  ?  He  felt  the  way  to  rule  was  to  clear 
the  land  of  bandits  and  revolutionists,  to  sweep  away  the 
ringleaders,  and  then  control  the  remaining  populace.  The 
people  feared  him,  they  knew  his  strength,  they  felt  his 
power,  and  now,  only  a  quarter  of  a  century  later,  they  have 
learnt  to  love  him,  and  are  led  by  a  silken  cord ! 

As  a  President  he  was  cautious  ;  he  had  no  diplomatic 
experience  to  help  him,  and  he  knew  but  little  of  govern- 
ment and  law.  Accordingly  he  chose  two  of  the  greatest 
lawyers  of  the  day  to  join  his  Ministry,  and  sought  their 
advice.  At  the  end  of  a  few  months,  however,  he  dis- 
covered that  they  were  working  against  him,  and  trying 
to  make  parties  for  their  own  ends.  With  that  belief  in 
his  own  strength,  which  has  always  stood  him  through  life, 
he  dismissed  them,  to  the  amazement  of  everyone.  They 
with  others  had  hoped — while  apparently  working  with  him 
— to  raise  a  revolution  against  Diaz ;  but  he  was  too 
strong  for  them.      He  had  come  to  stay. 

A  large  part  of  the  country  scoffed  at  him  as  President, 
declared  he  was  only  a  soldier,  and  for  months,  aye 
even  a  couple  of  years.  General  Diaz'  position  was  un- 
certain. There  were  several  minor  revolutions,  he  was 
surrounded  by  enemies,  jealousy  and  hatred  were  rife  on 
every  side  ;  people  expected  to  overthrow  him,  as  all  his 
predecessors  had  been  in  turn  unseated.  But  he  was 
strong,  and  proved  the  conqueror.  Time  showed  him  to 
be  the  greatest  man  in  Mexico.  He  has  slowly  and 
steadily  risen  to  power  and  respect,  risen  from  a  country 
lad    to    be    one  of  the    greatest    Dictators    the  world    has 


124  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

known.  As  a  soldier  he  has  quelled  war  and  established 
peace.  As  a  ruler  he  has  made  a  country — formerly 
insecure  even  to  its  own  inhabitants — safe  for  all.  As  a 
diplomat  he  is  at  peace  with  the  world.  He  has  paid, 
enormous  debts,  and  created  solvency — now  even  develop- 
ing into  wealth — in  Mexico. 

Has  any  other  man  in  the  nineteenth  century  done  as 
much  ?  We  have  had  a  Napoleon,  no  doubt  a  greater 
despot ;  a  Moltke,  a  greater  soldier ;  a  Beaconsfield,  a 
finer  politician  ;  a  Talleyrand,  a  greater  diplomatist ;  but 
has  any  man  of  humble  origin,  practically  self-educated, 
raised  himself  to  such  a  position,  and  brought  his  country 
from  battle  and  murder  to  peace  and  prosperity  } 

When  Diaz  became  President  he  was  forty-six  years 
of  age,  just  in  the  prime  of  life,  health  and  strength  ;  but 
even  his  powers  were  taxed  to  the  uttermost.  Plot  and 
intrigue  met  him  on  every  side  ;  he  lived  for  years  on 
a  political  volcano,  surrounded  by  prejudices  both  religious 
and  civil  ;  his  life  was  attempted  over  and  over  again  ; 
poison  and  powder  were  aimed  at  him,  his  friends  were 
often  enemies  in  disguise  ;  yet  in  spite  of  all  Porfirio  Diaz 
has  conquered  triumphantly. 

In  1900  he  was  elected  President  for  the  sixth  time, 
for  a  further  term  of  four  years,  in  fact,  with  one  break 
— namely  in  1880 — he  has  already  ruled  his  country  for 
more  than  twenty  years.  He  came  in  on  the  "  one  term 
platform,"  and  at  the  end  of  four  years  had  to  give  way 
to  General  Gonzales  ;  but  after  that  he  returned  to  power, 
and  being  thus  continuously  re-elected,  seems  likely  to  die 
in  harness. 

My  first  meeting  with  the  President  was  somewhat 
strange.  A  few  months  previously,  when  dining  with 
Mr.  Charles  Maclaren,  M.P.,  in  Belgrave  Square,  I  met  a 
friend.  Sir  Weetman  Pearson.  M.P.,  and  told  him  I  was 
leaving  the  following  week  for  Canada  and  the  States,  and 


GENERAL   PORFIRIO   DIAZ.  125 

intended  to  winter  in  Mexico.  He  at  once  suggested  giving 
me  an  introduction  to  the  President  and  other  people  of 
note,  as  he  has  many  business  relations  with  Mexico, 

"  I  will  ask  the  Governor  of  the  Federal  District, 
Senor  Guillermo  de  Landa  y  Escandon,  to  try  and 
arrange  a  meeting  for  you,"  he  replied  ;  "  but  the  General 
speaks  nothing  but  Spanish." 

This  was  rather  a  blow,  for  what  is  the  use  of 
knowing  three  languages,  when  the  one  most  wanted 
was  not  available.  Unfortunately  I  knew  no  Spanish,  but 
necessity  is  a  wonderful  teacher,  and  I  picked  up  sufficient 
knowledge  of  that  language  for  all  practical  purposes.  I 
trust  General  Diaz  will  forgive  me  if  I  say  that,  even  with- 
out any  fluency  in  that  tongue,  we  became  good  friends. 

It  was  a  glorious  day  in  December,  1900,  cold  but 
sunny,  when  Seiior  and  Seiiora  de  Landa  called  for  me 
in  their  carriage  with  its  smart  English  coachman.  All 
the  great  folk  in  Mexico  have  English  coachmen,  and 
as  many  of  the  ladies  speak  nothing  but  Spanish,  the 
arrangement  at  times  proves  a  little  droll. 

In  the  late  afternoon — about  sundown — the  aristocracy  of 
the  City  take  their  drive.  Most  people  use  closed  carriages, 
and  up  and  down,  up  and  down  that  fine  Boulevard,  to  and 
from  the  Castle  of  Chapultepec,  they  roll  in  the  dark — 
twilight  there  is  none — and  imagine  they  are  enjoying  them- 
selves !  The  grand  ladies  are  seldom  seen  during  daylight, 
except  at  early  mass  ;  they  come  out  like  bats  in  the  dark, 
yet  they  need  not  be  shy,  for  many  of  them  are  extremely 
good-looking,  with  lovely  dark  hair  and  eyes,  and  wonderful 
teeth. 

We  started  early,  before  the  fashionable  world  was  out, 
so  that  I  might  see  the  view  from  Chapultepec,  the  former 
home  of  Montezuma,  who  was  Emperor  of  Mexico  when 
the  Spaniard  Cortes  arrived  in  15 19, 

The    present     Palace,    now    the     summer    residence    of 


126  MEXICO   AS  I  SAW  IT. 

President  Diaz,  stands  on  a  hiq-h  rock  in  the  middle 
of  a  great  plain.  The  public  drive  is  below,  between 
wondrous  cypress  trees,  where  the  band  plays,  and  at 
the  Restaurant  many  entertainments  are  given  ;  but  no 
one  dares  go  up  the  hill  without  an  order,  except  the 
students  of  the  military  college,  who  share  with  the 
President  the  privilege  of  living  at  the  top. 

Mexico  is  full  of  romance,  and  in  a  spring-fed  pool  at 
the  bottom  of  the  hill,  nestling  among  those  glorious  trees, 
dwells  the  water  sprite  Malinche.  This  being  spends  her 
days  at  the  foot  of  Chapultepec  ;  she  woos  the  passer-by 
with  music,  is  gentle  and  sweet,  a  goddess  of  love  and 
goodness,  but  the  legend  says  that  at  nightfall  she  flies  miles 
and  miles  away,  her  voice  grows  mournful,  and  sometimes 
she  becomes  very  wicked. 

'Tis  a   pretty  little  legend,   and  one  of,   oh,  so  many  ! 

Don  Guillermo  de  Landa  was  not  only  Governor  of 
the  Federal  District,  he  was  also  Mayor  of  the  town, 
and  we  drove  up  to  the  Palace  amid  salutes  on  all 
sides. 

On  arriving  at  the  summit,  what  a  view  lay  spread  before 
us !  Probably  the  finest  view  in  the  whole  world  is  to 
be  seen  from  Chapultepec.  Below  lies  the  City  of  Mexico, 
originally  founded,  in-q^,  by  the  Aztecs,  under  the  name 
of  Tenochtitlan,  while  beyond  are  the  lakes  which,  doubt- 
less, millions,  aye,  billions  of  years  ago,  filled  the  entire 
valley  with  water.  Ten  miles  away,  rising  almost  perpen- 
dicularly from  the  basin,  begins  a  grand  chain  of  mountains. 
There,  on  the  right,  almost  tapering  to  a  point,  is  the 
volcano  Popocatepetl,  some  17,782  feet  in  height,  while 
next  to  him  is  the  snow  lady  Ixtaccihuatl,  16,062  feet 
high.  They  are  more  imposing  than  the  Alps,  because 
their  snow-crowned  summits  tower  singly  into  the  heavens 
above,  and  the  extent  of  valley  below  adds  strength  and 
grandeur  to  their  rugged  peaks.        There    is    a  feeling  of 


Duoi-way  in  Mexico  City. 


To  fare  ptij^c  127.  J 


GENERAL   PORFIRIO   DIAZ.  127 

immensity,  nothing  confined  or   shut  in.      The  panorama  is 
sublime. 

It  chanced  to  be  a  glorious  sunset.  The  snow  was 
coral  pink,  tinged  by  the  hand  of  the  Almighty,  and  the 
clouds  swiftly  chasing  one  another  across  the  sky,  and 
over  the  mountains  themselves  were  pink,  and  blue,  and 
grey  in  turn.  Mexico  is  famous  for  her  skyscapes,  and 
certainly  that  night  she  surpassed  herself. 

Yes,  the  view  from  Chapultepec  was  the  grandest,  the 
most  imposing  and,  in  those  soft  evening  lights,  the  most 
sublime,  I  have  ever  gazed  upon  in  the  course  of  many 
wanderings.  Well  may  the  Mexicans  be  proud  of  their 
land.  One  moment  the  picture  seemed  all  ablaze  with  red 
and  yellow,  and  the  next,  as  though  a  curtain  fell  suddenly 
from  heaven,  all  was  dark. 

We  saw  the  Palace — the  Pompeian  court  arranged  by 
poor  Maximilian,  the  roof-garden  with  roses,  geraniums, 
and  gorgeous-leaved  plants  growing  in  the  open  air  at 
Christmas  time  ;  but  inside  the  building  was  disap- 
pointing, for  the  rooms  were  all  furnished  with  modern 
French  upholstery,  not  even  Spanish  !  Large  verandahs, 
palms  and  banana  plants,  gave  an  Eastern  effect,  and  yet 
a  chilliness  filled  the  air. 

On  returning  from  our  drive  we  went  to  call  on  the 
President  and  Madame  Diaz  ;  their  winter  home  is  in  the 
town — the  doors  were  flung  wide,  and  we  drove  into  the 
patio. 

Now  a  Mexican  house  has  a  style  all  its  own.  Large 
doors  lead  to  a  courtyard  open  to  the  roof  The  bottom  floor 
is  assigned  to  the  servants  and  ofifices — the  coach-house, 
stables,  etc.,  are  all  on  the  ground  floor — and  the  President's 
home  was  no  exception.  We  ascended  a  handsome  flight 
of  marble  stairs,  and  reached  the  first  floor,  off  which  all 
the  chief  rooms  opened.  The  gallery  with  its  flowers  and 
plants   was  exposed    to   the  elements,    which   is    a  strange 


128  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

thing  about  Mexican  homes.  Often  in  winter  it  is  really- 
cold,  and  the  summer  is  tremendously  hot — the  sun  even 
on  a  winter's  day  gives  great  heat — -but  when  it  is  cold, 
the  cold  is  penetrating.  Mexicans,  however,  though 
accustomed  to  warmth  out  of  doors,  live  with  open  patios, 
rarely  have  a  fireplace,  and  never  hot  water  pipes  ;  conse- 
quently, their  houses  with  polished  hoors,  light  furniture, 
thin  curtains,  and  utterly  devoid  of  artificial  heat,  are  in 
winter  cold,  while  the  bedrooms  at  night  send  a  chill 
throuQfh  one  on  enterinsf.  The  natural  result  of  all  this  is 
that  pneumonia,  which  often  ends  in  death,  is  common. 

On  our  arrival,  the  porter  below  having  rung  up,  we 
found  a  door  of  the  gallery  open,  and  a  couple  of  footmen 
wearing  English  livery  waiting  to  bow  us  in. 

Madame  Diaz  was  expecting  us.  She  is  perfectly 
delightful.  Tall  and  dark,  extremely  good-looking,  with 
pretty  manners  and  gracious  ways,  she  wins  all  hearts,  added 
to  which,  "  Carmelita,"  as  she  is  universally  called,  having 
been  educated  in  the  United  States,  speaks  English  and 
French  fluently.  She  is  the  President's  second  wife,  and  by 
her  gentle  birth,  tact  and  kindly  thought  has  done  much  to 
soften  the  harder  and  rougher  side  of  his  character.  Her 
womanly  influence  came  to  him  at  a  time  when  it  was  no 
longer  necessary  to  rule  with  such  an  iron  hand,  and  she 
guided  him  to  softer  measures  and  more  diplomatic  ways. 

Her  drawing-room,  upholstered  in  French  style,  was 
pretty  and  dainty,  and  her  welcome  most  cordial  and 
graceful.  When  I  got  to  know  her  better  I  found  her  a 
charming  woman,  with  the  manners  of  a  diplomatist,  the 
most  gracious  way  of  saying  pleasant  things  ;  well-read, 
keenly  interested  in  many  subjects,  Carmelita  is  indeed  a 
wonderful  woman. 

A  few  minutes  after  our  arrival  the  President  himself 
walked  in.  He  is  a  man  of  medium  height,  probably 
ab^ut   five  feet    eight   or    nine   inches,    broadly  built,    and 


Machuiic  1  )ia 


To  face  page  128. 


GENERAL   PORFIRIO   DIAZ.  129 

wearing  his  grey  hair  closely  cut.  Diaz,  who  looks  under 
sixty — though  in  reality  ten  years  older — has  all  the  bearing 
of  a  soldier,  the  manners  of  a  courtier,  and  the  graciousness 
of  a  friend.  He  is  quick  and  alert  in  movement,  has  a 
delightful  and  kindly  smile  ;  but  his  head  and  jaw  denote 
strength  and  a  profound  depth  of  character.  His  clear  dark 
eyes  are  deep-set  and  thoughtful,  his  nose  large,  with 
dilating  nostrils  ;  the  forehead  high,  the  face  long,  and  one 
is  instantly  struck  by  the  clearness  of  the  dark  skin  and  the 
look  of  youth  and  vitality. 

I  had  expected  much  from  so  remarkable  a  man,  the 
maker  and  ruler  of  an  Empire — but  he  more  than  came  up 
to  my  expectations.  There  is  something  in  his  manner 
which  at  once  wins  confidence  and  commands  respect,  a 
certain  quiet  repose,  and  yet  that  healthy  complexion  and 
deep  chest  denote  the  man  of  action  and  exercise.  He 
might  be  a  smart  English  colonel,  so  well-preserved  is  he. 
He  speaks  clearly  and  incisively,  likes  conversation  to  be  to 
the  point,  but  rather  enjoys  being  chaffed  occasionally,  when 
a  merry  twinkle  comes  in  his  eyes,  proof  that  a  vast  store  of 
humour  lies  behind  that  rugged  mask. 

With  a  courtly  bow,  he  said  he  had  never  regretted  his 
inability  to  speak  English  more  than  on  the  present 
occasion,  but  that  I  must  forgive  him,  for  he  had  never  had 
time  to  learn,  though  he  thought  English  so  essential  that 
.  it  was  now  being  taught  in  all  public  schools.  He  was  a 
great  believer  in  education,  he  said,  but  it  must  come  to  a 
nation  gradually.  Let  people  read  first,  and  then  they  want 
to  know  more,  and  learn  for  themselves.  He  has  organised 
an  excellent  system,  under  which  every  Indian  must  learn  to 
read,  write  and  cipher  ;  higher  grades  are  open  for  those 
who  wish  to  profit  by  them. 

"I   believe  this  education  will  awaken  the  country,  and 
prove  an  inestimable  boon,"  he  said. 

Is  he   right  ?     Is  the   Indian  ripe    for  such    education  } 

9 


I30  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

The  nation  is  still  full  of  superstition,  it  believes  in  witch- 
craft and  fears  the  devil.  Man  is  by  nature  a  hunter,  an 
Agriculturalist,  or  a  rearer  of  stock,  according  to  his  environ- 
ment. The  Mexican  native  sleeps  upon  the  bare  ground, 
liyes  on  very  little,  has  few  wants  and  no  knowlege.  In 
itiany' cases  he  is  lazy,  owing  to  the  climate,  and  is  often 
nothing  more  than  an  animal,  sometimes  with  instincts 
less  noble  and  brave.  He  is  happy,  for  he  knows  no 
better.  He  is  artistic  at  heart — see  his  dress,  the  colours 
he  chooses,  his  pottery,  and — wonderful  for  a  rude  people — 
he  admires  fine  scenery !  But  educate  him,  and  what  will 
happen  .'^  Therein  lies  a  great  problem.  People  who 
employ  Indians  prefer  those  w^ho  can  neither  read  nor 
write  ;  they  have  their  own  ideas,  and  have  not,  as  yet, 
acquired  the  conflicting  influence  of  others. 

President  Diaz  spoke  of  the  Transvaal  War,  and  was 
glad  to  know  that  General  Roberts  was  then  on  his  way 
home, 

"He  has  done  splendid  work.  How  old  is  he?"  he 
inquired. 

"  Seventy,  I  think,"  was  my  reply. 

"Ah,  my  own  age.  I  thought  so.  Wonderful  man.  Old 
men  in  England  are  your  greatest  men  "  (a  remark  Ibsen 
also  made  to  me).  "  That  is  because  you  live  healthily, 
take  exercise,  and  keep  the  body  active." 

Speaking  of  Kitchener's  preference  for  unmarried  soldiers, 
of  which  he  had  read  somewhere,  he  said  : — 

"  He  is  quite  right.  A  married  man  may  be  just  as 
good  a  soldier  ;  but  if  he  be  a  good  husband,  he  fights  with 
a  sad  heart.  I  am  quite  as  much  a  soldier  at  heart  as  ever 
I  was,"  he  added  ;  "  I  have  followed  every  move  in  this 
war,  and  all  the  chief  articles  in  foreign  papers  are  translated 
for  me  every  day." 

This  remark  was  typical  of  the  man.  He  has  everything 
of  import  translated  for  him.      He  knows  all  that  is  going 


GENERAL  PORE  I  RIO   DIAZ.  131 

on  ;  no  one  could  possibly  be  more  up-to-date,  and  with  his 
splendid  memory  he  forgets  nothing. 

Somehow,  the  conversation  drifted  to  the  superstitions  of 
the  Indians.  Strange  to  say,  Diaz,  in  spite  of  his  birth,  is 
not  in  the  least  superstitious.  He  started  forth  a  feW 
years  ago,  for  the  United  States,  one  of  a  party  of  thirteen. 
They  had  a  lovely  time,  and  "all  lived  happily  for  years 
afterwards,"  as  he  merrily  put  it. 

I  told  him,  Nansen  had  been  one  of  thirteen  on  his 
Polar  Expedition,  the  most  successful  of  all  the  North  Pole 
Explorations  ;  the  only  one,  in  fact,  without  any  loss  of  life 
whatever.  He  chuckled  with  pleasure,  and  pointing  to  a 
rug  made  from  the  skin  of  a  Polar  bear,  which  lay  at  our 
feet,  said  : — 

"That  is  the  nearest  I  shall  ever  go  to  the  Pole." 
And  so  we  chatted  on  and  on  for  a  couple  of  hours. 
Madame  Diaz  or  Seiior  de  Landa  doing  the  translating. 
So  accustomed  is  the  President  to  this  triangular  style  of 
conversation  that  it  does  not  seem  to  worry  him  in  the 
least,  and  as  I  could  understand  most  of  the  Spanish,  even 
at  that  early  stage  of  my  stay  in  Mexico,  the  difficulties 
were  considerably  lessened.  Whatever  the  subject  touched 
upon,  the  President  seemed  to  know  all  about  it,  and  when 
he  did  not  know,  he  just  asked  ;  at  least  he  asked  me 
several  questions  about  England,  which  showed  he  was 
anxious  to  learn  all  that  was  possible.  Only  fools  are  too 
shy  to  seek  information  and  acquire  knowledge. 

Before  we  left  he  promised  his  photograph  and  that  of 
his  wife,  and  kindly  offered  me  a  seat  in  his  box  at  a  grand 
concert  to  be  given  in  honour  of  his  re-election  as  Presi- 
dent, therefore,  although  a  stranger,  and  he  a  charming 
despot,  I  left  his  house  feeling  I  had  gained  a  friend.  With 
the  most  courtly  air  he  offered  me  his  arm,  and  in  spite  of  all 
arguments  insisted  on  escorting  me  down  the  wide  marble 
staircase  to  the  patio  and  waiting  until  we  were  seated  in 


132  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

the  carriage,  when  with  many  kindly  words  of  farewell  he 
bowed  low  as  we  drove  away.  It  is  by  such  little  acts  he 
wins  all  hearts,  for  he  is  a  grand  gentleman  in  bearing,  his 
manners  in  his  own  house  being  regal  yet  friendly.  He  was 
bravery  personified  as  a  soldier,  he  is  a  politician  and  a 
ruler,  and  he  has  made  himself  all  these  despite  his  Indian 
blood  and  struggle  for  education.  Diaz  has  climbed 
from  the  lowest  rung  of  life's  ladder  to  one  of  its  topmost 
pinnacles.  No  one  ever  impressed  me  more  than  the 
President  of  Mexico.  There  is  a  reserved  strength,  a 
quiet  force  about  him  which  commands  respect,  a  kindly 
gentleness  that  wins  affection.  Each  time  I  saw  him  I 
learnt  some  new  trait  in  his  character,  and  felt  how  im- 
measurably above  ordinary  mankind  this  self-made  ruler 
undoubtedly  was. 

Many  people  spoke  to  me  of  Diaz.  One  of  the  great 
railway  officials  of  Mexico  once  said  : 

"His  memory  never  fails,  and  his  grasp  of  a  subject  is 
extraordinary.  If  I  have  to  go  back  to  him  concerning 
some  subject  a  month  later,  and  waver  one  iota  in  fact  or 
figure  from  what  I  said  before,  the  President  at  once  pulls 
me  up,  and  reminds  me  that  I  stated  so  and  so.'' 

On  another  occasion  I  was  talking  to  a  scientific  man, 
who  remarked  : 

"Yes,  Diaz  often  astonishes  me.  If  he  does  not  under- 
stand a  thing,  he  asks  for  an  explanation.  He  never  has 
to  be  told  twice  ;  he  seems  to  be  able  to  grasp  a  subject 
immediately,  and  if  at  a  later  period  I  refer  to  it,  he  says 
'Oh  yes,  I  remember  you  explained  that  last  time.'" 

These  are  only  casual  testimonies  ;  but  they  show  the 
capacity  of  the  man  for  mastering  detail,  and  retaining 
the  knowledge  he  assimilates. 

When  re-elected  President  from  1900  to  1904,  General 
Diaz  received  the  deputation  on  the  terrace  at  the  Castle  of 
Chapultepec,  and  was  informed   of  the  wish  of  his   people 


GENERAL   PORE  I  RIO   DIAZ.  133 

in   the   following  terms  by  Congressman   Alfredo  Chavero 
who  acted  as  spokesman  and  said  : — 

"  In  the  name  of  the  electors  I  come  to  announce  to  you  the  result  of 
the  voting  which  terminated  but  a  few  moments  ago.  The  majority  of 
those  who  are  present  remember,  and  all  of  us  know,  that  on  June  21, 
1867,  a  memorable  date  for  the  country,  you  raised  aloft  in  the  capital  of 
the  Republic  the  national  flag,  which  in  its  folds  contained  the  seed  of  the 
fortunate  era  of  peace  w^e  now  enjoy.  The  electors  have  charged  me  to 
inform  you  that  they  consider  it  altogether  necessary  that  you  continue  to 
guide  the  destinies  of  the  nation,  whose  will  it  is  that  you  remain  at  your 
post  to  perfect  your  work.  All  of  us  know  that  the  attractions  of  home 
life  are  great ;  but  all  of  us  realise  that  the  power  of  making  a  nation 
happy  is  a  boon  still  greater.  This  is  the  task  which  the  people  entrust  to 
you,  and  which  they  hope  you  will  accept  for  the  good  of  all.  Cicero  said 
that  to  be  happy  a  man  needed  four  things ;  to  have  travelled,  to  have  a  son, 
to  have  built  a  house,  and  to  have  planted  a  tree.  Your  travels.  General,  have 
extended  all  over  the  Republic,  holding  aloft  and  defending  the  banner  of 
liberty,  the  glorious  and  triumphant  standard  of  the  nation.  As  a  moral  per- 
sonality you  are  the  father  of  the  Mexican  people.  The  edifice  w^hich  you 
have  built  is  the  Nation,  and  in  its  soil  you  have  planted  the  olive  tree  of 
peace.  The  entire  country  acclaims  you  at  the  present  moment  and  extols 
your  name  as  that  of  its  most  conspicuous  citizen,  and  the  most  suitable 
person  to  guide  its  destinies.  It  deposits  its  whole  trust  in  you,  and  does 
not  doubt  that  you  will  sacrifice  yourself  to  the  duty  which  it  lays  upon  you." 

The  President  made  the  following  reply  : 

"  Gentlemen  :  It  is  a  great  honour  for  a  citizen  to  be  called  to  the 
position  of  President  of  the  Republic.  But  the  honour  is  still  greater  when 
it  is  conferred  by  the  unanimous  will  of  the  nation,  when  the  elections 
prove  that  the  Mexican  people  have,  with  the  full  sincerity  of  their  hearts, 
centred  their  desires  on  a  single  person.  I  must  add  that  I  am  most 
grateful  to  the  electors  of  the  six  electoral  districts  of  the  capital  of  the 
Republic  who  have  come  to  inform  me  of  the  result  of  the  elections.  It  is 
my  duty  to  say  that  in  seeking  the  cause  of  the  nation's  prosperity  in  the 
personal  qualifications  of  its  ruler  there  is  danger  of  committing  an  error. 
It  is  my  firm  belief  that  the  mere  confidence  which  a  nation  feels  in  its 
ruler  forestalls  the  latter's  task ;  that  confidence  is  the  basis  of  all  govern- 
ment, the  foundation  of  the  administrative  edifice,  and  is  the  cause  and 
earnest  of  prosperity.  Possessing  that  factor  the  success  of  any  government 
is  assured.     As  to  the  result  of  the  elections  which  are  now  taking  place,  I 


134  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

must  repeat  what  I  said  some  months  ago  when  the  period  of  electoral 
gestation  was  just  beginning,  viz.,  that  neither  my  age  nor  my  capabilities 
qualify  me  to  continue  ruling  the  country.  I  am  seventy  years  of  age,  of 
which  forty-three  have  been  devoted  to  the  active  service  of  the  fatherland. 
As  to  my  abilities,  I  re-affirm  my  previous  opinion,  and  I  can  only  add 
that  I  will  not  withhold  from  my  country  my  closing  years,  if  she 
requires  them  of  me,  any  more  than  I  have  begrudged  to  her  the  unstinted 
services  of  my  whole  life." 

The  conclusion  of  the  President's  words  was  the  signal 
for  a  tremendous  ovation.  Above  all,  the  modesty  with 
which  General  Diaz  spoke  of  his  incomparable  services 
deeply  touched  all  hearers.  Personal  congratulations  were 
then  offered  to  the  President,  while  the  artillery  band 
played  some  of  its  most  stirring  national  selections. 

Probably  by  contrast  to  the  turmoil  of  the  greater  part 
of  his  life,  General  Diaz  now  prefers  retirement.  He  rises 
early,  and  after  his  coffee  works  with  his  secretaries,  reads 
the  Mexican  papers  and  translations  of  others,  and  then 
goes  off  quietly  to  the  Municipal  Palace,  as  often  as  not 
alone  and  on  foot.  Then  the  audiences  for  the  day  com- 
mence— a  day  full  of  diverse  work,  for  he  superintends 
everything,  goes  into  all  details  whether  railways,  mines, 
schools,  church  matters,  military,  diplomatic  or  commercial 
affairs.  He  dines  about  two  o'clock,  after  which  he  enjoys 
a  siesta,  and  by  four  is  ready  for  coffee  and  more  work. 
He  takes  his  evening  meal  between  eight  and  nine,  and 
occasionally  plays  a  game  of  billiards. 

President  Diaz  does  not  go  much  into  society  ;  his  whole 
life  is  given  to  the  government  of  his  country,  and  his  home. 
It  is  a  perfect  home  life,  and  no  wonder,  with  such  a  wife. 
She  helps  the  President  in  many  ways,  and  though  she  has 
no  children  of  her  own,  is  nevertheless  charming  to  his 
children  by  a  former  marriage,  and  was  very  enthusiastic 
over  the  advent  of  the  first  grandchild  while  I  was  there. 

Madame     Diaz,     besides     being     handsome,     is     always 


GENERAL   P  ORE  I  RIO  DLAZ.  135 

beautifully  dressed.  In  some  ways  she  reminds  me  of 
Queen  Alexandra  in  type  and  bearing. 

I  once  asked  Madame  Diaz  if  she  ever  wore  a  high  comb 
and  mantilla. 

"  No,"  she  replied,  "  a  comb  never,  a  mantilla  only 
sometimes  at  church." 

"  But  why  not  '^     They  are  both  so  charming  !  " 

She  laughed. 

"  We  think  them  old-fashioned,  and  have  quite  given 
them  up,  but  the  President  often  suggests  my  using  a  comb 
again.      He  likes  the  style." 

"  And  does  General  Diaz  wear  the  riding  dress  still  ?  " 

"  Yes,  sometimes,  but  that  is  going  out  too." 

What  a  pity  !  We  are  all  sinking  to  one  dead  level. 
Soon  there  will  be  no  special  manners,  customs  or  dress 
left.  We  shall  all  be  exactly  alike.  Each  country  is  be- 
coming famous  for  some  particular  style,  which  the  others 
copy.  For  instance,  the  French  cuisine  reigns  supreme. 
England  leads  the  fashion  for  men's  clothes.  Paris  ordains 
what  women  shall  wear.  America  gives  us  our  latest 
inventions.  Germany  monopolises  cheap  manufacture. 
National  individuality  is  rapidly  disappearing. 

Whenever  there  is  any  reform  in  the  Constitution  of 
Mexico,  or  a  Presidential  election  takes  place,  the  fact  has 
to  be  publicly  notified  by  means  of  a  "  bando,"  just  as  is 
the  case  at  the  Mansion  House  in  London. 

In  Mexico,  all  the  members  of  the  ]\Iunicipality  drive 
in  open  carriages  through  the  streets,  headed  by  the  Public 
Notary,  whose  duty  it  is  to  see  that  the  Proclamation  is 
duly  affixed  at  twelve  important  public  places.  A  body  of 
troops  of  five  or  six  regiments  accompanies  the  municipal 
officers,  and  crowds  o-ather  in  the  streets  to  cheer  them 
on  their  way.  As  each  copy  is  posted  the  bells  of 
the  churches  are  set  ringing,  and  the  soldiers  present 
arms. 


136 


MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 


Below  is  the  notice   of  the  sixth  election  of  General  Diaz 
to  the  Presidency,  posted  on  Decejiiber  ist,  1900. 


SmEL  mOLUR 

Cobernador  de9  OistHto  Fedorai,  &  %u%  haJlsK'- 

ia^ites,  eabeda 

({lie  (lor  111  Si'iTctiirlii  ili-  KnUuIo  >  del  Donpacbu  de  Qob«rniic'i6n,  hc  me  ha  dirigido 
piini  *ii  pruuitili:u<'iiiii.  rl  NJKuipiitc  decreto: 

Kl  Prcsidento  de  U  R«pilb!ica  se  ha  seniiio  diriifiniu-  el  decreto  que  NiKue: 


-PORFIRIO  OfAZ,  Presidents  Constitucionai  de  los 
nos,  a  sus  habitantes,  sabed: 


Unidos 


"Que  la  Cdnmra  de  DipuladoH  del  Cougreso  de  la  Caiiin  ha  tenido  i  bien  decretar 
Id  i|iie  siuue: 

•IjiCiliiiunuli'  Dipiitiidio  delCoiiKresodelriN  HsludoH  I'nidos  MexieanoH.enejerciciode 
la  Till  III  lull  i|Ui'  le  rniiliiTr  111  rriie.  I  li'Irii  Adel  ur(.  >^  de  lu  C'oiiNtitiicii'iii  Federal,  deflaru: 

■•.Vrtli  iilii  iliiini,  Ks  I'retideiite  CmiHtitiieiiiiial  dc  lus  l>tado«  Lnidan  Mexicunos,  el 
CiiiJuiLiiui  (iriierul 


para  el  roatrienio  que  romeczarii  cl  proximo  1"  de  Diciembre  j  terminori  el  3U  de  No- 

riemhre  del  afto  de  1904. 

•'Triiiisitorio.  MAa  de(lurucii5n  hv  publicart  por  Bando  Nacional." 

"Siiliinde  S<'Mioiii>  de  luCiliuara  de  DiputjidoH  del  Coiigreso  de  la  L'ni6n.-M#xico,  24  de 

S  ptleiiilire  de  VMM.-Jiixiinii  h'riiiiniilrz.  Uiputtdii  l*residente.--.i.  ilr  la  h'iia  y  Hryr*,  Di- 

putudo  Secrelariii.-  rV///<M  I/.  Stiinvdiii,  DipuUdo  Swrelario." 

•I'lir  (iiiitn.  in.iiiilii  M'  iiiipriinii.  ciniili'  \  pulilique  por  Uaudo  !\'acionaI.-M*xJ«),  29  de 

Septii'iiilire  de  I'JOO.-Porlirio  Diaz.-Ai  t.  tJeniTiil  Mnnuel  fioii/.iJlfz  Cuslo,  S<Tretiirio  de 

EBtado  y  del  Despucho  dc  OobernaciOn.-Prasente." 

"Y  lo  comunico  &  Vd.  para  nu  intelicencia  j  fines  consignienteie." 

"Libertad  j  ConstitociAn.  Mexico,  Septiembre  29  de  lIXW.-.U.  COSIO.-Al  C.  Oober- 

nador  del  DiHtrito  Federal.-- Presentc.'" 

Y  para  que  lleguo  &  nolicia  de  todcm,  maiido  se  imprima,  publiqae  y  cLrcuIc  por 

Bando  National. -Mexico,  Octubre  I"  dc  iiXW. 

RAFAEL  REBOLLAR 


•-> 


ANGEL  2IMBRON. 


GENERAL   PORE  I  RIO   DLAZ.  137 

Before  I  left  Mexico,  General  Diaz  fell  ill.  Rumours 
increased  in  circulation  as  they  spread,  and  apparently 
other  countries  imagined  he  was  dying,  if  not  already  dead. 
Revolutions  were  predicted,  shares  dropped  appreciably, 
and  everyone  prepared  for  the  worst. 

All  this  was  quite  unnecessary.  The  President  was  very 
ill — he  is  three-score  years  and  ten — but  he  is  in  reality  a 
strong  healthy  man,  many  years  younger  than  his  actual 
age.  Diaz  has  been  the  architect  and  builder  of  modern 
Mexico,  and  so  well  has  he  done  his  work,  it  is  extremely 
unlikely  that  anyone  will  undo  it.  The  country  has  been  at 
peace  for  a  quarter  of  a  century,  everything  has  improved, 
and  the  men  who  have  helped  the  President  to  bring  this 
about,  are  round  him  to  day.  Even  if  he  were  to  die, 
they  would  remain. 

There  are  many  able  men  in  Mexico  besides  the  President. 
It  is  invidious  to  draw  comparisons,  but  General  Bernardo 
R.eyes,  Hon.  Jose  Ives  Limantour,  and  Hon.  Ignacio 
Mariscal  are  the  persons  to  whom  I  would  specially  refer. 

General  Reyes  is  a  strong  man.  He  is  a  soldier  ;  his 
interests  are  wide,  and  after  living  many  years  at 
Monterey  in  Northern  Mexico,  he  speaks  English  like  an 
American  !  He  is  still  in  the  prime  of  life,  and  has  proved 
an  excellent  Minister  of  War  and  Marine.  He  can  organise 
and  command,  and  some  day  may  be  called  upon  to  do 
both  on  a  much  laro-er  scale.  Beinof  a  soldier,  he  holds  the 
heart  of  the  people,  who  are  accustomed  to  military  rule. 

There  is  one  party  in  Mexico  which  speaks  of  Limantour 
as  Diaz'  probable  successor,  but  this  is  hardly  likely.  He 
is  a  splendid  man,  however,  most  able  in  finance,  and 
older  than  Reyes  ;  but  even  were  he  to  succeed  temporarily, 
it  is  improbable  that  Mexico  would  be  content  for  long 
with  one  who  was  neither  a  soldier,  nor  yet  of  Mexican 
blood,  excellent  though  he  might  otherwise  be. 

I  am  not  a  politician,  but    I    heard  and   saw  much  while 


138  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

in  the  Republic.  Unless  anything  unforeseen  should 
happen,  General  Diaz  may  be  spared  for  many  years  to 
come  ;  but  surely  he  might  ease  his  own  burdens  somewhat 
by  appointing  a  successor  whom  he  could  guide  and  help. 
Reyes,  Limantour  or  Mariscal  will  probably  be  the  man  ; 
each  is  thoroughly  capable,  and  Mexico  is  far  too  settled 
for  any  revolution  to  be  likely.  It  must  be  remembered, 
Mexico  is  accustomed  to  a  military  dictator,  that  is  the 
government  the  people  understand. 

Diaz  was  a  soldier,  living  an  arduous  military  life,  at  a 
time  when  Mexico  had  sixteenth  centurv  ideas,  and  was 
ruled  by  Church  despotism,  reminiscent  of  the  middle 
ages  ;  but  Diaz  was  a  wonderful  man.  He  shook  himself 
free  from  the  trammels  of  the  past,  and  carved  out  a 
development  for  himself,  and  a  future  for  his  country.  It 
was  as  a  general  of  the  army  he  declared  himself  President 
of  the  Republic,  although  of  late  years  it  is  not,  perhaps,  so 
much  as  a  military  despot,  but  rather  as  a  diplomatic  ruler 
that  he  has  reigned.  His  power  is  absolute.  His  vote  gives 
a  man  office  ;  there  are  no  constitutional  limits  to  his 
authority.  Diaz  has  proved  capable  in  every  issue.  The 
wheels  of  state  are  well  oiled,  and  no  man  is  likely  to 
be  foolish  enough  to  try  and  upset  a  regime  that  is 
acknowledged  by  the  entire  world  to  be  a  success. 

A  man  who  has  increased  railroads  from  four  hundred 
miles  to  eight  thousand  in  his  short  reign,  who  has  en- 
couraged manufacturers  and  agriculturalists  everywhere,  and 
helped  forward  home  industries  is  a  great  man,  and  in  all 
probability  no  one  will  endeavour  to  change  his  organisations 
or  systems  of  government.  While  he  was  ill,  Senor  Mariscal 
was  appointed  Deputy  President,  but  to  guard  against  trouble 
in  the  future,  it  would  surely  be  well  for  President  Diaz  to 
elect  his  own  successor  now.  His  word  is  law  ;  the  man  he 
chooses  and  guides,  and  believes  capable,  will  be  eagerly 
accepted  by  the  people. 


GENERAL   PORFIRIO  DIAZ.  139 

No  one,  of  course,  can  dictate  to  Diaz,  for  no  man 
is  more  competent  to  control  his  fellow  men  ;  but  perhaps 
the  idea  of  providing  for  the  future  may  occur  to  him. 
Suppose  he  should  appoint  General  Reyes  ?  He  is  a 
soldier,  and  military  rule  is  necessary.  He  is  a  Mexican, 
and  a  native  President  is  imperative  ;  he  is  a  politician, 
and  a  man  with  such  knowledge  is  indispensable.  He 
knows  and  approves  the  "  Diaz "  policy.  He  has 
travelled,  has  lived  among  English-speaking  people,  and 
is  a  man  of  culture  as  well  as  strength.  He  is 
Minister  of  War,  and  already  controls  thirty  thousand 
men  armed  with  Mauser  rifles.  He  is  likewise  the 
idol  of  the  Mexican  army. 

Bernardo  Reyes  was  born  in  Guadalajara  in  1850,  so  he 
is  still  in  the  prime  of  life.  Not  only  is  he  a  soldier,  he  is 
also  a  statesman  of  unblemished  character.  He  has  always 
displayed  extraordinary  bravery  ;  has  been  a  prisoner, 
taken  part  in  warfare  and  strife  before  Porfirio  Diaz  became 
President,  at  which  time  the  rebels  deserted  him,  whereupon 
he  surrendered  to  Diaz.  So  excellent  was  his  record  for 
bravery,  patriotism  and  loyalty  that  the  new  President 
appointed  young  Reyes  commander  of  the  Sixth  Regiment 
of  Cavalry.  Years  of  active  work  were  passed  in  quieting 
outbreaks  in  various  parts  of  Mexico  ;  but  it  was  not  till 
1880,  when  Reyes  took  part  in  a  great  action  at  Villa 
Union,  receiving  three  dangerous  wounds,  that  the  power 
of  the  man  was  fully  recognised,  and  he  was  subsequently 
made  a  General. 

He  is  a  delightful  man,  everyone  speaks  of  him  in 
terms  of  highest  praise  ;  he  is  an  educated  soldier,  with 
charming  manners  and  considerable  political  and  diplomatic 
knowledge.  A  strong  Liberal  in  politics,  he  is  a  staunch 
friend  and  admirer  of  President  Diaz,  in  whose  footsteps 
he  loyally  treads. 

Senor  Jose  Limantour,  whom   I  value  much   as    a   friend, 


140  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

is  more  French  than  Mexican,  although  he  Is  Minister  of 
Finance.  A  man  whose  opinion  the  world  holds  in  high 
esteem  exclaimed  of  him  : — 

"He  is  one  of  the  cleverest  men  in  any  government 
of  the  present  day."  This  was  high  praise,  and  un- 
doubtedly Limantour  is  one  who  impresses  the  stranger 
with  his  clear  vision,  broad  views,  and  general  conception 
of  facts.  A  tall,  thin  man  with  grey  hair,  he  looks  more 
like  a  great  Church  dignitary  than  a  Minister  of  State. 
His  suave  French  manners  and  gentlemanly  bearing  cover 
strength  of  character  and  determined  will.  He  is  rich,  lives 
in  a  lovely  house,  and  has  a  most  affable  and  charming  wife. 
Like  so  many  Mexicans  he  is  a  believer  in  the  value  of  an 
intimate  acquaintance  with  foreign  languages,  and  his 
daughter — a  sweet  girl — speaks  French  and  English  fault- 
lessly. She  has  always  had  resident  foreign  governesses, 
and  although  she  has  never  been  in  England,  one  might 
in   conversation  almost  take  her  for  an  EnMish woman. 

It  is  said  that  Mexico's  Minister  of  Finance  and  Mr. 
Gladstone  were  the  only  two  men  able  to  put  a  Budget  in  an 
attractive  form.  Be  that  as  it  may,  in  his  annual  review  of 
the  financial  situation  and  Budget  estimates  for  1901,  he 
gives  interesting  details  regarding  the  income  and  expendi- 
ture of  the  Government  that  afford  conclusive  evidence  of 
the  steady  progress  and  development  of  Mexico  during 
the  last  few  years.  The  yield  from  import  duties  marks 
the  growing  foreign  trade  of  the  country,  the  revenue 
from  this  source  having  almost  doubled  in  seven  years, 
as  shown  by  the  following  table  : 


Fiscal  Years. 

Import  Duties. 

Difference. 

1893-94 

$15,313,926     59 

1894-95 

17,738,129    66 

$2,424,203     07 

1895-96 

21,492,211     91 

3,754,082     25 

1896-97 

21,481,225     93 

10,985     98 

1897-98 

20,963,442     63 

517.783     30 

1898-99 

26,443,847     66 

5,480,405     03 

1 899- 1 900 

27,696,979    06 

1,253,131     40 

GENERAL  PORFIRIO  DIAZ. 


141 


The  stamp  revenue  is  a  faithful  index  of  the  growing 
business  of  Mexico.  The  figures  given  below  for  six 
years  show  an  increase  of  more  than  sixty  per  cent., 
notwithstanding  the  fact  that  last  year  many  important 
reductions  were  made  in  the  stamp  taxes : — 


Fiscal  Years. 

Stamp  Revenue. 

1894-95 

$15,553,989 

SO 

1895-96 

18,066,480 

46 

1896-97 

19,948,271 

29 

1897-98 

21,621,246 

n 

1898-99 

23,215,698 

77 

I 899- I 900 

24,849,618 

78 

Cost  of  Fees. 

Ratio. 

1,233,119     74 

7.93  per  c 

1,317,375     13 

7-29 

1,316,230     79 

6.60        „ 

1,403,336     49 

6.49        „ 

1,470,656     75 

6.33        „ 

1,302,867     26 

5-24       „ 

The   receipts  from  the  Federal  telegraph  lines  and  post 
office  department  show  equally  good  gains  in  five  years  : — 


Post  Office. 

Telegraph  Li 

\ES. 

1895-96 

1896-97 
1897-98 
1898-99 
1 899- 1 900 

$1,062,415  99 
1,195,771  62 
1,345,062  43 
1,513,902  19 
1,860,105  87 

I  133,355  63 
I  149,290  81 
I  168,839  76 
I  346,203  67 

1895-96 
1886-97 
1S97-98 
189S-99 
I 899- I 900 

$622,340  69 
698,103  08 

810,547  53 
980,715  44 
087,520  34 

I 
I 
I 

I 

75,762    39 

112,444  45 
170,167  91 
106,804  90 

The  following  table  gives  an  interesting  comparison 
of  the  amounts  collected  from  the  various  branches  and 
the  total  Government  income  for  a  period  of  five  years, 
the  annual  revenue  for  that  period  having  Increased  to 
the  extent  of  fourteen  million  dollars  : — 


1895-96  1896-97  1897-98  i?98-99  1899-1900 

Taxes     on      Foreign 

Commerce §23,658,69261     §23,639,08091     g23, 284,989  17     §28.738,48040     $29,945,79304 

Interior  Taxes  Pay- 
able in  all  the 
Federation  20,418,848  54       21,589,407  27       22,920,702  3i       24,590,404  64        26,201, 40':i  14 

Interior  Taxes  Pay- 
able iu  the  Federal 
District  and  Terri- 
tories       3,357,611  81  2,705,761   11         2,794,45841         2,958,55501  3,280,63091 

Public  Services  and 
Minor  Sources....      3,o86,3i7  46         3,565,879  46         3,692,804  66         3,846,742  74  4,833,246  3o 

Total  Receipts..  §50,521,470  42     $51,500,62875     $52,697,98455     $60,139,21284     §64,261,07639 


142  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

Last  Budget  Exp^ndUurt for  Increase  of 

Appropriations.  '  Expenditure. 

'  ^     '  1901-1902.  ^ 

Legislature §1,020,742  65  §1,020,742  65 

Executive  149,305  52  174,116  09  §24,810  57 

Judiciary  518,286  40  537,488  20  19,201  80 

Department  of  Foreign  Relations  594>633  85  671,963  85  77,330  00 

Department  of  the  Interior 4,438,433  95  4,648,049  00  209,615  05 

Department     of    Justice     and?  „  aq^  ^^^  ^„  „»<:>,  -,^^  ..„  „..  „„^ 

Public  Education {  2,686,030  00  2,781,232  50  95,202  50 

Department  of  Fomento 953,484     36  958,686     16  5, 201     So 

Department  of  Communications  >  »/;_..  o,:  -  £_ 

and  Public  Works \         7,467,591     33  8,633,040     45      1,165,419     12 

Department  of  Finance ;    Ad- 7  7,047,021  21  7,156,886  85  109,865  64 

ministrative  Services \  />   -t/^  /,   j   ,  j  v,      j  t 

Public  Debt 20,432,992  45  21,007,902  45  574,910  00 

Department  of  War  and  Marine  13,632,374  09  13,987,882  04  355, 507  95 

Totals §58,940,895     81      §61,577,990     24    §2,637,094     43 

The  total  estimated  receipts  of  the  Government  for  1901 
amount  to  $61,694,000,  but  owing  to  the  conservative 
estimates  of  the  secretary,  they  will  doubtless  exceed  this 
amount  by  at  least  five  or  six  million  dollars,  as  has  been 
the  case  in  former  years.  The  increased  receipts  of  the 
past  few  years  account  for  the  present  Treasury  surplus  of 
more  than  thirty  million  dollars. 

Hon.  Ignacio  Mariscal  is  Minister  of  Foreign  Relations. 
I  was  introduced  to  him  by  Madame  Braniff,  and  although, 
unfortunately,  I  did  not  see  as  much  of  him  as  I  could  have 
wished,  his  personality  was  striking.  He  is  a  man  with  a 
remarkably  high  forehead,  deep  penetrating  eyes,  a  good 
lin2:uist,  and  married  to  an  American. 

The  other  Ministers  are  : — 

Hon.  Manuel  Fernandez  Leal,  Minister  of  Fomento  or 
Encouragement  ;  Manuel  Gonsalez  Cosio,  Minister  of  In- 
terior ;  Hon.  Joaquin  Barranda,  Minister  of  Justice  and 
Education  ;  and  General  Francisco  Mena,  Minister  of 
Communications. 

General  Diaz  has  certainly  been  wise  in  the  choice  of 
his  Ministers.  He  is  surrounded  by  able  men,  who  though 
strong  enough  to  command  whole  parties,  nevertheless  work 
in  harmony  with  the  President  that  built  up  modern  Mexico. 


GENERAL   P  ORE  I  RIO   DIAZ. 


143 


The  Government  of  the  Republic  is  arranged  as  follows. 
There  are  twenty-seven  States,  ten  Territories,  and  a 
Federal  District  : — 


Name  of  States. 


Aguas  Calientes  . . , 

Campeche 

Coahuila 

Colima 

Chiapas  

Chihuahua 

Durango 

Guanajuato 

Guerrero 

Hidalgo 

Jalisco 

Mexico 

Michoacau 

Morelos 

Nuevo  Leou 

Oaxaca 

Puebla 

Queretaro  

San  Luis  Potosi  . . . 

Sinaloa 

Souora  

Tabasco 

Tamaulipas 

Tlaxcala 

Vera  Cruz 

Yucatan 

Zacatecas 

Territory  of  Tepic. 
Lower  California.. 
Federal  District . . . 


Capital. 


Aguas  Calientes  . . , 

Campeche 

Saltillo , 

Colima 

Tuxtla  Guitierrez  . 

Chihuahua 

Durango 

Guanajuato  

Cliilpancingo 

Paclaica 

Guadalajara 

Toluca 

Alorelia  

Cuernavaca 

Monterey   

Oaxaca 

Puebla 

Queretaro 

San  Luis  Potosi 

Culiacaii 

Hermosillo , 

San  Juan  Bautista  , 

Victoria 

Tlaxcala 

Jalapa 

Meriila 

Zacatecas 

Topic 

La  Paz 

Citv  of  Mexico 


Area 

Assessed 

Population 

Square 

Population. 

of 

Miles. 

Capital. 

3,oSo 

$6,272,375 

124,615 

31,619 

20,760 

1,728,435 

92,180 

i6,63i 

Sq.OOO 

7,152,345 

241,026 

19,654 

2,700 

3,925,724 

62,000 

19,305 

29,600 

4,722,823 

319,599 

7,882 

89,200 

5,926,728 

288,073 

40,000 

42,300 

7,727,327 

286,906 

42,169 

i2,3oo 

31,005,785 

1,062,554 

90,000 

22,700 

2,120,000 

417,621 

6,204 

7,600 

16,078,924 

558,769 

52,186 

38,400 

24,023,825 

1,1 09,3a  1 

125,000 

8,080 

22,127,344 

841,018 

28,648 

23,000 

22,728,416 

891,253 

32,287 

i,85o 

17,125,572 

159,555 

8,504 

25,000 

11,684,323 

309,252 

56,855 

28,400 

13,127,425 

884.909 

32,641 

12,600 

37,127,591 

948,413 

91,917 

3,800 

12,062,345 

235,678 

5o,ooo 

26,100 

15,123,727 

568,499 

80,000 

36, 100 

5.072,424 

258,865 

14.205 

77.000 

7,623,121 

191,687 

8,367 

10,000 

4,232,163 

134,839 

27,006 

29,000 

7,828,822 

206, 502 

14,574 

i,5oo 

7,842,924 

i66,So3 

2,874 

23,840 

26,232,716 

866,355 

18.873 

28,400 

4,892,516 

299,000 

06,720 

25,oOO 

16,989,728 

469.000 

70,000 

53o 

788,042 

148,776 

7,450 

60.000 

4,894,733 

43,245 

16,226 

460 

61,124,573 

476,413 

400.000 

748,590 

§409,318,296 

13,325,047 

1,447,827 

To  support  the  Governments  of  the  various  States,  there 
is  a  system  of  taxation  on  all  foreign  and  domestic  mer- 
chandise, as  well  as  a  direct  tax  on  real  and  personal 
property.  Each  State  is  represented  in  Congress  by  two 
Senators,  elected  alternately  every  two  years,  and  by  one 
Member  of  the  Chamber  of  Deputies  for  each  forty 
thousand  inhabitants. 

Over  all  this  rules  the  great  Dictator,  General  Diaz, 
whose  justice  is  the  guarantee  of  the  nation's  stability  and 
peacefulness.  He  has  always  used  his  immense  power  for 
his  country's  good.      Long  may  he  live ! 


144 


CHAPTER  IX. 


MEXICAN       SOCIETY 


The  City  of  Mexico  has  been  likened  to  Paris,  and  in  many 
ways  the  comparison  is  good.  It  is  not  so  bustling  as  New 
York,  nor  yet  so  sleepy  as  London.  There  is  the  gayest 
society,  the  smartest  frocks,  the  prettiest  women,  but  the 
restaurants  are  indifferent,  and  the  hotels  worse.  High 
civilisation,  great  refinement,  beauty  and  talent  can  be 
found  in  the  Capital  itself,  yet  barbarism  exists  outside. 

There  is  great  wealth  in  the  City,  palatial  homes  where 
the  occupants  do  not  even  enjoy  the  luxury  of  a  want ! 

Mexican  society  is  very  exclusive.  The  families  are 
wonderfully  united,  and  spend  most  of  their  time  together,, 
that  is  to  say  the  women  folk,  for  men  have  a  way  of 
slipping  off  to  the  Jockey  Club,  where  they  play  baccarat, 
which  begins  at  five  o'clock  every  afternoon,  and  does  not 
always  stop  by  five  next  morning. 

The  day  begins  with  coffee,  taken  early,  in  the  bedrooms 
— a  custom  that  enables  people  to  go  about  in  neglige  attire 
for  the  greater  part  of  the  forenoon,  as  in  France.  This 
light  repast  is  followed  by  an  enormous  mid-day  meal, 
usually  served  about  one  o'clock,  when  soup,  fish,  entrees, 
meats,  puddings,  and  numerous  sweets  always  appear  at 
table  in  the  better  houses.  This  banquet  is  the  event  of 
the  day  ;  visitors  are  invited,  and  sociability  ensues.  For- 
merly everyone  indulged  in  a  siesta  after  dinner,  indeed,  all 
houses  of  business  are  still  closed  from  one  to  three  ;    but 


Senor  Guillermo  de  Landa  y  Escandon. 


[  To  face  page  144. 


MEXICAN  SOCIETY.  145 

nowadays  the  siesta  itself  is  going  out  of  fashion,  except 
among  servants  and  the  poorer  classes. 

When  the  important  business  of  lunching  is  over,  each 
gentleman  offers  his  arm  to  a  lady,  and  conducts  her  back 
to  the  drawing-room.  Cigarettes  follow.  Society  dames 
in  Mexico  scarcely  ever  smoke  ;  but  among  Indian  women 
the  habit  is  universal.  Cigarettes  in  the  north,  and  cigars 
in  the  more  southern  tobacco-growing  districts  are 
constantly  to  be  seen. 

Many  families  possess  beautiful  silver,  glass  and  china, 
brought  from  Spain  by  their  ancestors.  The  dinner-tables, 
however,  are  seldom  pretty  or  artistic.  The  lady  of  the 
house  usually  allows  her  servants,  or  someone  from  the 
market,  to  fill  her  bowls  with  flowers,  which  are  packed  as 
full  as  they  will  hold  with  blooms  of  every  colour.  The 
result  is  stiff  and  inharmonious.  They  have  not  yet 
acquired  the  art  of  using  one  kind  of  flower,  or  at  most 
two,  interspersed  with  green  trails  of  foliage. 

As  regards  house  decoration,  one  seldom  finds  flowers 
about  in  this  land  of  beautiful  blossoms.  Perhaps  the 
Mexicans  do  not  care  to  have  them  in  their  rooms  because 
they  die  so  quickly  ;  but  whatever  be  the  cause,  one  just 
as  often  sees  artificial  flowers  in  the  drawing-room,  as  real 
ones.  The  prettiest  bloom  has  not  always  the  sweetest 
scent,  just  as  the  softest  speech  often  hides  a  cruel  heart. 

After  coffee,  which  is  always  strong,  but  generally  good, 
for  Mexico  is  producing  excellent  coffee  nowadays,  the 
visitors  depart.  It  is  the  custom  for  the  host  and  hostess  to 
walk  to  the  top  of  the  staircase,  where  the  chatelaine  says 
"  good-bye,"  and  the  gentleman  offers  his  arm  to  his  lady 
guest,  takes  her  down  to  the  patio,  and  puts  her  into  her 
carriage.  I  had  no  carriage,  and  it  was  no  uncommon  thing 
for  the  host  to  send  me  home  in  his. 

They  have  a  funny  arrangement  in  Mexico  for  cabs. 
There  are  three  classes  :  those  bearing   yellow  flags  are  the 

10 


146  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

cheapest  ;  those  decorated  with  red  are  of  medium  price, 
and  consequently  most  largely  patronized  ;  while  others 
with  dark  blue  bands  painted  on  the  body  are  more  like 
carriages  than  an  ordinary  hack  for  hire  in  the  street. 

Society  is  delightful.  The  sons  of  most  of  the  best 
families  have  been  educated  in  England — they  have  been 
to  Stoneyhurst  or  Belmont  between  the  ages  of  twelve  and 
eighteen  ;  some  have  even  been  to  our  Universities.  Con- 
sequently the  sympathy  is  strong ;  indeed,  several  men 
looked,  dressed,  and  spoke  so  much  in  accordance  with 
English  ideas,  that  it  seemed  impossible  to  believe  they 
were  Spanish   Mexicans. 

The  love  acquired  by  the  men  in  their  youth  for 
England  appears  constantly  ;  for  instance,  the  children 
are  often  under  the  care  of  an  English  governess, 
while  the  small  boys  are  dressed  in  Jack  Tar  suits. 
Then  again  many  of  the  men  get  their  clothes  from 
London,  as  their  wives  do  from  Paris.  The  former  are 
beginning  to  ride  on  English  saddles,  to  adopt  corduroy 
breeches  and  high  boots,  and  apparently  the  death-knell 
of  the  native  saddle  and  dress  is  already  tolling. 

Not  only  is  English  talked  by  all  educated  men,  but 
there  is  scarcely  a  shop  of  any  importance  in  this  cosmo- 
politan city  where  that  language  is  not  spoken,  and, 
as  has  previously  been  remarked,  the  railway  officials, 
managers,  clerks,  and  engine-drivers  are  all  English- 
speaking  people.  Who  will  deny  that  English  is  fast 
becoming  the  language  of  the  world  ? 

Mexican  ladies  are  often  beautiful — the  dark  Spanish 
type  predominating  ;  but  they  are  not  always  good 
linguists.  French  is  their  favourite  language,  probably 
from  its  resemblance  to  their  own,  and  niany  of  them 
have  been  educated  at  convents  in  France,  as  their 
brothers  have  at  public  schools  in  England.  They  dearly 
love  chocolate  parties.     Smart  folk  dress  up  in  their  best, 


MEXICAN  SOCIETY.  147 

about  five  o'clock,  and  before  starting  on  their  twilight 
drive,  enjoy  their  coffee  or  chocolate,  generally  the  latter, 
which  is  made  so  thick  that  the  spoon  stands  upright  in 
the  cup  if  placed  in  the  middle  of  the  brown  beverage.  It 
really  is  delicious,  but  a  little  of  it  goes  a  long  way,  and  for 
a  nation  inclined  to  embonpoint,  is  hardly  homoeopathic  in 
its  results.  The  women  have  pretty  manners,  and  dress 
charmingly — everything  they  wear  is  the  latest  fashion — 
and  their  politeness  and  amiability  surprise  a  stranger. 

The  courtesy  of  Mexico  is  wonderful ;  for  instance, 
at  a  dinner  party  a  man  will  hand  a  glass  of  wine  to  a 
woman,  and  with  a  bow,  say  : — 

"  Endulcemela,"  meaning  "  Sweeten  it  for  me."  She 
raises  the  glass  to  her  lips,  and  then  passes  it  back 
for  the  gentleman  to  enjoy. 

Again,  when  paying  a  first  call  on  a  friend,  I  was  amazed 
at  the  following  remark  : — 

"  Ya  tomo  v  posesion  de  su  casa."  "You  have  now 
taken  possession  oi  your  home." 

Did  he  mean  he  was  giving  me  his  house  ?  If  so, 
the  situation  was  a  little  embarrassing.  I  smiled  a  sickly 
smile,  and  he  repeated  "  This  house  is  yours."  He  did 
not  mean  it,  he  merely  implied  that  for  the  moment  I 
was  to  treat  his  house  as  my  own.  If  a  stranger  were 
to  accept  such  an  invitation  in  its  literal  meaning,  however, 
and  arrive  bag  and  baggage,  great  would  be  the  dismay 
of  the  hostess. 

One  admires  a  watch  or  a  cabinet.  "It  is  yours," 
is  the  prompt  reply,  which  means  nothing,  it  is  only  a 
figure  of  speech  like  "  I  hope  you  are  quite  well." 

In  reply  to  the  question  "Where  do  you  live  .-*"  a  Mexican 
will  say  : — 

"  Su  Casa  de  Usted  No.  10,"  etc.,  meaning  "  Your 
house,  the  house  at  which  you  are  welcome,  is  No.  10,"  etc. 

When  writing  a  letter,   instead    of  putting    the  address, 

10* 


148  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

they  often  write  C.  de  V.  (Casa  de  V.)  meaning  "  Your'^ 
house,  or  "  my  "  house  at  your  disposal. 

The  Mexican  must  learn  to  be  parsimonious  in  pro- 
mises. He  is  so  generous  in  thought,  he  gives  away 
all  he  has,  to  draw  back  in  deed ! 

In  spite  of  great  wealth,  there  is  none  of  that 
vulgar,  ostentatious  display  of  riches  which  betrays  humble 
origin.  Of  course  there  are  miserably  poor  folk  in  the  city 
as  everywhere  else  ;  and  doubtless  there  are  miserably  rich, 
for  although  money  shuts  the  door  on  want,  gold  alone 
can  never  bring  happiness. 

When  anyone  sneezes,  the  company  usually  call  out 
"Jesus,"  meaning  "Good  health  to  you.''  This  expres- 
sion is  also  used  to  imply  that  a  man  is  friendless  and 
knows  no  one. 

It  is  always  said  high  Mexican  families  are  exclusive,  and 
there  is  no  doubt  but  that  this  is  the  case — even  to  those 
bearing  good  introductions — for  they  are  so  taken  up  with 
their  own  affairs  that  beyond  a  stately  dinner  they  seldom 
extend  hospitality.  They  rarely  invite  foreigners  to  their 
homes  ;  but  personally  I  was  most  fortunate,  perhapsJiecause 
they  knew  my  appreciation  of  their  kindness.  ■  I  found 
them  charming,  well-read,  well-educated,  pleasant-mannered  ; 
in  every  way  cultivated  gentlefolk,  extremely  hospitable 
and  courteous. 

It  is  a  pity  they  do  not  show  this  side  more  often 
to  strangers  ;|  but  if  they  will  shut  themselves  up  so 
completely  within  their  own  family  circle,  they  must  not 
be  surprised  if  they  are  misjudged  by  the  outer  world 
so  much  as  they  are. 

Mexican  families  are  most  amiable  and  united.  The 
better  classes  own  houses  which  are  perfect  palaces.  In 
one  of  them  dwells  Seiior  So-and-so  with  his  wife  and 
children  ;  but  Madame's  mother  and  sister  joined  the 
establishment   on    the  death  of   Madame's    father,    and    in 


MEXICAN  SOCIETY.  149 

addition  Senor  So-and-So  has  a  mother  and  brother  who 
make  their  home  with  him.  This  is  not  the  exception, 
but  the  rule,  I  honestly  believe  that  in  Mexico  City 
there  is  no  large  house  which  shelters  "  Papa,  Mamma 
and  Baby "  alone.  There  are  always  some  relations  on 
one  side,  if  not  on  both,  included  in  the  family  menage. 
It  says  a  great  deal  for  their  amiability.  One  portion 
of  the  patio  may  be  devoted  to  the  "  outside "  family, 
or  perhaps  a  whole  floor  if  the  house  is  large  enough  ; 
but  they  all  meet  at  meals,  and  in  no  way  live  apart. 
Once  a  bachelor  marries  and  starts  a  home  of  his  own, 
it  is  quickly  filled  by  his  relations. 

They  all  seem  to  agree  splendidly  ;  the  family  life  appears 
to  be  of  the  happiest  nature.  They  have  their  parties  and 
festivities  among  themselves,  their  birthday,  name-day,  and 
feast-day  celebrations  ;  perhaps  twenty  or  thirty  members 
of  the  family  will  muster  and  the  following  week  this  will 
be  repeated,  and  the  next,  and  the  next.  They  are  quite 
contented  amongst  themselves. 

It  struck  me  that  little  entertaining  of  a  "  friendly " 
kind  was  enjoyed.  Big  luncheons  and  dinners,  or  nothing, 
were  the  fashion.  No  one  apparently  ever  "  drops  in." 
No  attempt  is  made  to  keep  open  house. 

When  invitations  are  given,  the  entertainments  are  costly 
and  well  done  ;  but  then  the  usual  formality  accrues. 
A  couple  of  friends  invited  to  an  ordinary  meal  seems 
an  unheard-of  occurrence  among  the  Spanish  aristocracy. 
In  fact  I  was  twice  asked  quietly  to  luncheon,  "just  our- 
selves," and  arrived  to  find  a  regular  banquet  and  a 
large  party !  I  was  not  dressed  for  a  function  of  the 
kind,  and  laughingly  remarked  : — 

"  You  have  asked  me  under  false  pretences.  You 
said  you  would  be  en  famille." 

"  Yes,  but  we  thought  you  might  find  it  dull." 

The  Mexicans  so  far  have  not  realised  that  the  poorest 


I50  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

morsel  offered  with  love  and  sympathy  is  far  more  welcome 
than  the  grandest  feast  without  them  ;  they  only  entertain 
on  a  great  scale. 

If  a  host  have  two  friends  he  wishes  to  make  known  to 
one  another,  he  says  with  a  wave  and  a  bow  : 

"  May  I  introduce  a  friend  ?  " 

The  friend  in  question  immediately  steps  forward,  and 
gives  his  full  name  to  the  other  stranger,  adding,  "  Your 
servant."  The  second  man  does  the  same,  so  they  really 
introduce  themselves,  by  which  means  they  can  pronounce 
their  names  as  they  like,  no  small  matter  in  Spanish,  where 
the  mother's  name  is  tacked  on  with  a  "  Y  "  to  the  end  of 
every  man's  title. 

Mexicans  are  very  Latin  by  temperament.  They  become 
wildly  enthusiastic  over  some  person  or  thing  which  excites 
their  interest  for  the  time  ;  but  they  soon  weary  of  the  new 
hobby,  and  the  passion  dies  out  almost  as  quickly  as  it  was 
kindled.  They  are  excitable  in  conversation,  gesticulate 
freely  to  emphasise  their  words,  and  one  feels  the  warm 
blood  of  a  southern  race  is  tingling  in  their  veins. 

They  say  all  manner  of  delightful  things,  but  of  course 
they  never  mean  them.  Pretty  compliments  fall  from  their 
tongues  and  unspeakable  admiration  beams  from  their 
lovely  dark  eyes.  It  is  only  their  way.  They  promise 
many  things  they  would  never  think  of  performing,  all  in 
that  beautiful  flowery  language  which  is  very  pleasing, 
but  oh,  so  misleading !  Of  course,  I  am  now  speaking  of 
mere  acquaintances,  people  one  meets  at  a  ball  or  a  dinner  ; 
once  that  film  of  compliment  and  insincerity  is  passed,  they 
are  true-hearted,  kindly  friends,  as  it  has  been  my  fortunate 
lot  to  find,  many,  many  times.  Indeed,  I  have  never  met 
truer  hospitality  and  friendship  than  among  the  Spanish 
Mexicans. 

Many  of  these  beautiful  homes  contain  rare  old  Spanish 
furniture,    bric-a-brac,    pictures,    things    that    have    been    in 


MEXICAN  SOCIETY.  151 

the  family  for  generations.  Most  of  them,  alas !  are 
stowed  away  in  the  nurseries  or  servants'  quarters,  while 
modern  French  furniture  appears  in  the  best  rooms. 
Just  the  same  thing  happened  lately  in  England.  An  old 
squire  died,  and  when  the  men  were  sent  to  take  the 
probate,  they  found  that  one  of  the  Chippendale  chairs  in 
the  servants'  hall  was  worth  all  the  modern  furniture  in 
the  dining-room,  while  the  value  of  the  one  cupboard, 
with  its  queer  brass  handles,  in  the  children's  room, 
was  ten  times  as  much  as  that  of  all  the  modern  wardrobes 
put  together.  The  same  thing  would  apply  to  Mexico. 
All  the  houses  are  modern  French  in  appearance  ;  but 
hidden  away  are  countless  treasures,  the  value  of  which  is 
only  just  beginning  to  dawn  on  the  present  generation. 

The  winter  is  the  season  for  entertaining  ;  then  balls  and 
parties  are  given,  and  everyone  is  prepared  to  enjoy 
himself.  The  invitations  are  generally  short,  because  as 
everyone  is  more  or  less  related  to  everyone  else,  it  is 
pretty  well  known  when  So-and-So's  birthday  will  take  place, 
or  when  the  celebration  of  some  couple's  silver  wedding 
will  occur. 

When  Mexicans  do  open  their  doors,  they  are  lavish  in 
their  hospitality,  and  their  entertainments  are  regal.  On 
leaving  a  friend's  house  after  a  meal  it  is,  as  I  said  before, 
by  no  means  unusual  for  a  stranger  to  be  sent  home  in  his 
carriage,  and  not  only  that,  but  to  be  positively  laden  with 
flowers,  hand-painted  menu-cards,  or  boxes  of  bon-bons. 

On  one  occasion  I  stepped  into  a  smart  little  brougham, 
and  turning  to  my  host,  said  : 

"  Please  tell  the  gentleman  on  the  box  where  to  drive, 
and  what  you  wish  him  to  do  afterwards." 

"  John,"  said  my  host  in  English,  to  my  intense  amaze- 
ment, "drive  Mrs.  Tweedie  to  the  Hotel  del  Jardin,  and 
when  you  have  done  so,  come  home." 

Collapse  of  Mrs.  T. ! 


152  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

There  are  several  interestino-  little  customs  in  Mexico 
that  strike  the  stranoer. 

o 

A  man  In  the  United  States  does  not  remove  his  hat  on 
entering  an  office,  while  a  Mexican  invariably  does. 

When  lighting  a  cigar  or  cigarette  from  a  friend's, 
Mexicans  always  touch  little  fingers  ;  not  to  do  so  would  be 
as  rude  as  to  refuse  a  proffered  hand-shake. 

The  habit  for  a  man  to  kiss  a  woman's  hand,  which  exists 
almost  universally  in  Europe — a  courtesy  which,  however, 
we  omit,  alas !  in  England — does  not  exist  in  Mexico. 
Latin  race  though  they  are,  the  Mexicans  never  kiss  the 
hands  of  their  women.  Sons  invariably  address  their  fathers 
as  Sir  (Sefior),  and  no  son  or  inferior  would  ever  dream  of 
smoking  or  drinking  in  the  presence  of  an  elder  without 
beino-  invited  to  do  so. 

One  night  after  dinner  my  host  asked  me  if  I  cared  to  go 
to  the  theatre. 

"  It  is  past  nine  o'clock,  we  should  be  too  late,"  I 
answered. 

"  Not  at  all,  we  can  go  in  for  a  tanda." 

"  And  what  may  a  tanda  be  }  "  I  enquired. 

"  It  is  an  act,  or  more  properly  speaking  a  single  little 
play  lasting  about  three-quarters  of  an  hour." 

We  went,  and  it  was  quite  entertaining. 

Outside  in  the  hall  rows  of  people  were  sitting.  They 
were  waiting  for  that  act  to  end,  and  the  next  to  begin. 
The  stalls  hold  three  or  four  completely  different  audiences 
in  one  evening.  Twenty-five  cents  (about  sixpence)  is  the 
price  for  the  tanda,  and  if  a  man  stay  for  a  second  act  he 
must  pay  again.  It  was  really  rather  funny.  The  audi- 
ence came  in  shoals,  sat  down  with  their  hats  on,  and 
waited.  The  moment  the  curtain  went  up  off  came  all  the 
hats,  only  to  be  put  on  again  at  the  end  of  the  tanda,  when 
the  entire  assembly  filed  out. 

The   cheapest  places  in   the  theatre  cost  twopence-half- 


MEXICAN  SOCIETY. 


153 


penny,  and   were  well  filled   with  Indians,   while  the   drop 
scene  was  as  full  of  advertisements  as  a  newspaper  page. 


.6X  TEATRO     ARBEU  K^ 

Compania    de    Zarzuela,      Empresa    Arcaraz    Hermanos. 


MIERCOLES     2 

de  Euero  de  1901. 
Ultimas  funciones  de  la  compania  de  Zarzuela. 

A  las  ocho  y  media 
CUATRO    FUNCIONES. 

— PROGRAMA 

Primera  fiiuciou    La  preciosa  zarzuela  en 

an  acto  tituhula 

EL  SANTO  DE  LA  ISIDRA 

Tomando  parte  las  Sras.     Soler  Rodriguez  y 
priucipales  artistas  de  la  Compania. 

Segunda  fuucidu      La  zarzuela  en   un  acto 
titulada 

OLE    SEVILLA 

Tomando  parte  las  Sritas.  Suler  Iris,  Sra.  Rodri- 
guez, y  principales  artistas  de  la  Compania. 

Tercera  fuucio'u 

COLOMBINO 

I    El  Duetto  do  Soprauo  y  Baritoiio 

DO=RE=MI=FA 

II    La  producei6n  original  de  Colombino,'' 
titulada 

UNA     ESCENA 

PARISIENSE 


PERSONAGES 
Mimi,  artista 
Carlo,  sirviente 

Fremolin,  maestro  de  musica     vULUlilDlJNU 
Genoveva  su  muger 
Uu  Vigilante 

Prdlogo  y  Epflogo 
V  Caricatura  de  los  celebres  maestros  de  musica 
Wagner  — Bellini  — Rossini  — Bicet  — Gounod — 
Mascagni — Meyerbeer — Strauss — Gomez,  etc. 

Cuarta  funcidn  La  zarzuela  en  un  acto  de 
Enrique  Garcia  Alvarez  y  Antonio  Pa  so, 
musica  de  F.  Chueca,  titulada 

La  Alegria  de  la  Huerta 

Tomando  parte  la  Sra.  Goyzueta,  Srita.  Irsi  y 
priucipales  artistas  de  la  Compania. 

Precios  de  entrada  para  les  4  Ines 

Plateas  y  palcos  los  con  6  entradas g6  0(1 

Palcos  segundos  con  6  entradas „  3  00 

Palcos  de  galen'a  con  6  entradas „  2  00 

Luneta  con  entrada $1  00 

Eventual  de  palcos  2os „  0  50 

Galeria „  0  2-5 

Niiiimeros  de  palcos  2os.  y  galeria „  0  10 

POR    FUNCION 

Acto  lo  2o  y  4o         2-5  cts. 

Acto  de  Colombino .")0  cts. 

Para  Maiiana  Jueves  El  Dorado 


Mexican  society  is  delightful  and  the  Diplomatic  corps 
entertaining  and  hospitable  ;  for  instance,  Baron  Moncheur, 
the  Belgian  Minister,  gave  charming  dinner-parties.  His 
house  was  full  of  old  cabinets,  Spanish  fans,  bits  of  em- 
broidery, and  curios  of  all  kinds.  He  was  an  excellent 
host,  and,  amono;st  others,  I  met  at  his  table  Prince  and 
Princess  Charles  Poniatowski,  Comte  de  Julvecourt,  M. 
Napoleon  Magne,  Don  Pablo  Amor,  Senor  Nicolas  Mar- 
tinez del  Rio,  Mr.  Lucien  Jerome,  etc.  Prince  Poniatowski 
as  a  boy  used  to  spend  much  of  his  time  at  Chislehurst  with 
the  French   Emperor  and   Empress,  and  was  one  of  those 


154  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

who  identified  the  body  of  Napoleon  III.  after  death. 
Although  he  is  a  Frenchman  by  birth,  his  father  was  the 
famous  Polish  composer. 

Monsieur  Hansen,  the  Russian  Charge  d' Affaires,  lives 
in  a  delightful  flat,  and  gave  some  of  the  most  interesting 
dinners  I  went  to  in  Mexico.  He  is  a  brilliant  pianist,  and 
possesses  a  valuable  musical  library,  one  so  unique  indeed 
that  it  ought  to  repose  in  a  museum  some  day,  instead  of 
being  scattered  as  priceless  collections  too  often  are. 

Monsieur  Hansen  is  one  of  the  most  popular  men  in 
Mexico,  and,  although  unmarried,  is  fond  of  entertaining 
ladies  at  his  hospitable  board. 

Unfortunately  before  I  reached  Mexico  City,  our  Minister, 
Sir  Henry  Deering,  and  his  wife  had  left  for  the  former's 
new  post  at  Rio  Janeiro.  This  was  sad,  as  Sir  Henry  was 
keenly  interested  in  Mexico,  and  had  kindly  planned  trips 
for  me,  and  done  much  to  persuade  me  to  write  a  book  on 
the  Republic,  when  we  were  staying  at  a  large  country- 
house  in  England  during  the  previous  year.  He,  however, 
gave  me  some  useful  introductions,  for  which  I  was  most 
grateful. 

The  new  English  Minister,  Mr.  Greville,  only  arrived 
some  months  later,  not  in  fact  until  the  very  day  I  left  for 
home.  At  the  time  of  my  visit  England  was  therefore  re- 
presented by  a  Charge  d'Affaires,  Mr.  Fairfax  Cartwright, 
but  as  he  was  of  a  retiring  nature,  English  people 
were  entertained  by  the  Consul,  Lucien  Jerome,  the  son 
of  General  Jerome,  V.C.,  a  distinguished  officer  who 
fought  in  the  Indian  Mutiny.  Mr.  Jerome  and  his  beau- 
tiful wife  did  much  for  the  amusement  and  pleasure  of  the 
English  residents,  ably  helped  by  Mrs.  Colley,  a  smart, 
Australian  cousin,  who  spent  the  winter  with  them. 

There  is  no  doubt  about  it — for  the  sake  of  a  country 
its  representatives  ought  always  to  entertain.  Then  again 
they  must  be  the  pick  of  the  nation.      Socially  and  morally 


MEXICAN  SOCIETY.  ■  155 

the  diplomatic  corps  which  represents  its  country  should 
be  above  suspicion,  and  able  to  maintain  a  dignified  position 
in  foreign  lands.  Nothing^  is  worse  for  a  nation  than  a 
bad  representative — a  man  (or  his  wife),  whom  people  do 
not  want  to  know,  or  who  do  not  trouble  to  entertain  those 
among  whom  they  have  come  to  stay.  Such  instances 
are  bad  for  society,  bad  for  diplomacy,  and  bad  for 
commercial  interests. 

The  American  Ambassador,  General  Clayton,  kept  open 
house  on  Friday  afternoons,  and  a  regular  reception  was 
the  result. 

There  are  several  charming  people  in  the  diplomatic 
circle  in  Mexico,  the  chief  leaders  of  society  there  being 
represented  by  Germany,  America,  Russia  and  Belgium. 

The  German  Minister  and  Baroness  von  Heyking  enter- 
tain considerably.  He  was  consul  and  diplomatic  agent  at 
Calcutta,  India,  and  Cairo  before  going  as  minister  to 
China,  and  during  Baroness  von  Heyking's  residence 
in  those  countries,  she  used  her  opportunities  and  taste 
in  making  a  collection  of  characteristic  objects  of  art. 
Thus  her  Mexican  home  is  embellished  with  the  rugs  of 
Persia  and  India,  tapestries  from  the  mosques  of  Egypt, 
bronze  lamps  elaborately  wrought,  from  the  pagodas  of 
China,  and  gilded  statues  of  Buddha  from  the  temples  of 
Japan.  The  walls  of  the  staircase  are  hung  with  water 
colours  painted  by  the  Baroness  in  China,  which  are  of  special 
interest  now,  for  some  of  the  buildings  which  they  represent 
were  destroyed  during  the  siege  of  the  legations.  For 
example  one  piece  depicts  a  corner  of  the  building  occupied 
by  the  German  Legation  at  Pekin,  which  during  the  siege 
was  wrecked  by  a  shell.  There  is  another  view  from  the 
famous  walls  of  the  city  which  represents  the  imperial 
palaces  with  their  yellow  roofs  and  the  sacred  gate  through 
which  the  Emperor  alone  is  allowed  to  pass.  All  these 
water  colours  were  exhibited  in  Berlin. 


156  ,  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

,  .      I 

--  Germany,  ever  to  the  fore,  has  sent  a  charming  military 
representative.  Lieutenant  Bartols,  to  study  miHtary  organi- 
sation and  methods.  One  would  hardly  think  Germany 
cDuld  learn  much  from  Mexico,  but  therein  lies  the  clever- 
ness. The  Fatherland  wants  to  know  everything,  and  this 
is  merely  a  part  of  the  great  system,  behind  which  so  much 
lies.  England,  whose  interests  in  Mexico  are  considerably 
greater,  does  nothing  of  the  kind.  We  do  not  send  people 
anywhere — not  even  to  the  Transvaal  in  olden  days — to 
make  maps,  survey  the  land  and  study  possible  warfare. 
Oh  dear  no,  we  do  not  trouble  ourselves  until  it  is  too 
late,  and  then  we  wonder  that  the  maps  are  not  there  ! 

Among  the  many  Mexican  families  who  kindly  offered 
me  hospitality,  none  were  more  gracious  or  more  interesting 
than  Senor  Guillermo  de  Landa  y  Escandon.  He  is  the 
leader  of  Society,  and  holding  as  he  does  several  public 
posts  as  well  as  being  descended  from  the  Escandon  family, 
in  addition  to  being  a  wealthy  man,  his  entertainments  are 
always  well  attended,  and  much  appreciated.  No  one  in 
Mexico  has  the  interests  of  the  country  more  at  heart,  and 
there  is  no  finer,  more  courtly  gentleman  or  stauncher  friend 
throughout  the  land. 

He  has  a  charming  country  house  a  little  outside  the 
City,  where  I  remember  being  present  at  one  particularly 
interesting  luncheon.  He  and  his  lovely  wife  were  waiting 
for  us  outside  the  Cathedral  in  a  special  electric  tramcar, 
which  bore  us  in  less  than  an  hour  to  one  of  his  many  rural 
homes.  Unfortunately,  the  President  was  not  well,  and  at 
the  last  moment  he  and  Madame  Diaz  excused  themselves, 
but  we  were  nevertheless  a  party  of  twenty-two.  Many 
members  of  the  diplomatic  circle  were  there,  including — 

General  and  Mrs.  Clayton,  representing  the  United 
States. 

Baron  and  Baroness  von  Heyking,  representing  Ger- 
manv. 


MEXICAN  SOCIETY.  157 

Baron  Moncheur,  representing  Belgium. 

Monsieur  Hansen,  representing  Russia. 

Seiior  Jose  Limantour,  Minister  of  Finance,  with  his  wife 
and  daughter.  v      . 

General  Mena,  Minister  of  Communications.  ^ 

General  Reves,  Minister  of  War, 

Senor  Ignacio  Mariscal,  Minister  of  Foreign  Relations. 

Mr.  Lucien  Jerome,  the  English  Consul,  and  his  de- 
lightful wife. 

In  fact.  Captain  Barrow,  the  leader  of  the  English 
Society,  Mr.  Stanhope  (Lord  Chesterfield's  brother),  and  I 
were  the  only  people  who  represented  nothing ! 

Seiior  Camacho,  the  Banker,  is  another  great  entertainer, 
and  one  of  my  most  pleasant  recollections  is  a  charming 
luncheon  at  his  lovely  house.  We  were  a  party  of  twenty, 
and  in  truly  Mexican  fashion  sat  down  to  table  shortly 
after  one  o'clock,  and  did  not  rise  till  nearly  four !  He  had 
courteously  ordered  a  number  of  Mexican  dishes,  knowing 
I  liked  to  try  them,  and  really  some  were  excellent,  notably 
Mole,  which  is  called  the  "  national  dish  '"  of  the  country. 
It  is  hardly  that,  however,  since  turkey  is  too  expensive  for 
the  ordinary  peon.  The  turkey  is  served  with  a  rich 
chilli  sauce,  which  is  hot — too  hot  for  most  mortals,  though, 
when  partaken  of  sparingly,  delicious. 

Seiior  Camacho  is  one  of  the  most  successful  men 
of  Mexico ;  he  has  acquired  an  influential  and  wealthy 
position,  and,  although  he  talks  English,  he  has  never  been 
outside  Mexico  in  his  life.  Among  his  guests  on  this 
occasion  were  the  Hon.  John  W.  Foster,  of  Washington, 
and  his  wife.  Mr.  Foster  was,  for  many  years,  the  United 
States  Minister  to  Mexico  ;  it  was  he — owing  to  his  ability 
as  a  lawyer — who  concluded  the  Peace  Treaty  between 
China  and  Japan.  He  is  one  of  the  most  popular  and  best 
known  men  in  the  United  States, 

Mr.  Foster  was  able  to  give  me  good  news  of  Colonel 


iS8  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

John  Hay,  whom  I  had  seen  a  few  months  previously  in 
Washington,  thus  renewing  a  pleasant  acquaintance  begun 
when  Colonel  Hay  represented  his  country  so  ably  in 
London.  What  tremendous  strides  in  the  position  of 
nations  the  United  States  have  made  while  he  has  been 
Secretary  of  State. 

Seiior  Pablo  Martinez  del  Rio,  the  greatest  lawyer  and 
legal  representative  of  most  of  the  railway  lines  in  Mexico, 
entertained  me  most  kindly.  Sefior  del  Rio  speaks  English 
as  perfectly  as  any  Englishman.  Like  so  many  of  his 
friends,  he  was  educated  at  one  of  our  Catholic  Colleges,  and 
certainly  acquired  the  language  without  the  slightest  accent. 
It  seems  impossible  to  believe  our  tongue  was  once  a  foreign 
language  to  him  ;  but  he  is  almost  equally  at  home  with 
French  or  German.  Don  Pablo  is  a  refined  and  courteous 
gentleman,  a  successful  lawyer,  a  rich  man,  and  he  and  his 
charming  wife  reign  over  one  of  the  most  popular  houses  in 
Mexico. 

Every  traveller  must  have  noticed,  when  he  has  been  in 
a  foreign  land,  that  if  the  day  chances  to  be  fine  and  he 
remarks  on  the  fact,  the  native  instantly  replies : — 

"We  always  have  weather  like  this." 

If,  on  the  other  hand,  it  is  wet,  cold  or  foggy,  and  he 
ventures  to  express  a  mild  surprise,  some  native  is  sure  to 
remark  : 

"  Most  unusual,  we  never  had  such  weather  before.  I 
don't  remember  anything  like  it." 

Such  was  my  experience  in  Mexico  City.  All  through 
the  first  half  of  December  it  rained,  rained  hard,  and  the 
wind  blew,  but  no  one  ever  recollected  such  a  deluge 
previously.  Nevertheless,  I  can  solemnly  affirm  we  had 
nine  wet  days  in  the  month.  Not  a  little  wet,  oh !  dear  no  ; 
but  regular  downpours,  rain  that  dripped  in  through  the 
roof,  and  flooded  the  streets,  until  it  necessitated  paying  a 
man  to  carry  one  across  the  principal  thoroughfares. 


MEXICAN  SOCIETY.  159 

Then  on  February  17th,  1901,  it  snowed — think  of  it, 
snowed !  and  again  no  one  could  call  to  mind  having  ex- 
perienced such  weather.  On  this  occasion  their  remarks 
were  true  enough,  for  it  had  not  snowed  for  forty-hve 
years.      The  paper  gave  the  following  : — 

A    RARE    PHENOMENON. 

SNOW    IN    THE   CITY    FOR   THE    FIRST   TIME    FOR    HALF    A   CENTURY. 

Snow  fell  in  this  city  yesterday  morning,  between  five  and  six  o'clock,  melting  as  it 
came  down.  Only  early  risers  saw  this  strange  northern  visitor.  But  out  in  the  south- 
western suburbs  of  Mixcoac,  San  Angel,  Coyoacan,  and  Tlalpam,  there  was  a  genuine 
snow-storm,  and  the  tropical  plants  and  trees  were  mantled  in  purest  white,  the  display 
lasting  about  two  hours.  The  sight  of  the  snow-laden  trees  and  plants  in  the  south- 
western suburbs  yesterday  morning  will  not  be  forgotten.  Children  went  out  and  gathered 
snow  in  all  kinds  of  receptacles,  and  were  puzzled  at  its  prompt  disappearance. 

The  great  and  historic  snow-storm  in  this  city  occurred  on  the  evening  of  the  i6th 
December,  1856,  when  it  snowed  all  night.  People  coming  out  of  the  theatres  found  the 
streets  white  with  quite  deep  snow,  and  in  some  cases  the  roofs  of  the  houses,  unable  to 
bear  the  weight,  fell  in  !  The  people  were  early  abroad,  and  thousands  went  to  the 
Alameda  to  see  the  effect  of  the  snow  on  the  trees.  During  the  forenoon  there  was 
snowballing,  and  much  amusement  was  found  in  this  meteorological  novelty  by  the 
people.     Thus  until  yesterday  there  had  been  no  snow  seen  here  for  forty-five  years. 

The  snow  must  be  forgiven,  for  it  lay  on  all  the  high 
mountains  and  surrounding  hills  quite  deep  into  the  valleys 
for  days,  and  made  the  panorama  even  more  beautiful  than 
usual. 

Among  the  many  interesting  people  I  met  in  Society 
were  Mr.  and  Mrs,  Alfred  Maudslay.  It  so  chanced  they 
were  passing  through  Mexico  during  my  stay  there.  He 
lent  me  his  wonderful  book,  "  A  Glimpse  of  Guatemala," 
wonderful  because,  besides  containing  interesting  informa- 
tion concerning  the  Ancient  Monuments  of  Central  America, 
it  has  some  really  beautiful  illustrations.  They  are  pictures, 
not  photographs,  and  add  considerably  to  the  value  and 
charm  of  the  volume.  Mr.  Maudslay  is  a  bright,  clever, 
enthusiastic  traveller,  and  notwithstanding  his  love  of 
antiquarian  research,  has  some  interest  in  mining.  But 
who  in  Mexico  has  not  some  interest  in  mining  ? 

The    City    of    Mexico    possesses    a    Women's    Club    for 


i6o  MEXICO  AS  I    SAW  IT. 

English-speaking  members.  They  did  me  the  honour  of 
giving  a  reception  on  my  behalf.  It  was  not  so  grand  as 
the  masfnificent  luncheon  of  Sorosis  at  the  Waldorf  Astoria 
in  New  York,  at  which  I  had  been  a  guest  a  few 
months  previously,  nor  on  so  large  a  scale  as  the  Fort- 
nightly or  Women's  Club  in  Chicago,  but  it  was  none  the 
less  hearty  and  genial.  It  says  much  for  the  women, 
mostly  Americans,  that  they  should  have  organised  this 
little  Club.  It  is  in  no  wise  political,  merely  social,  and 
holds  monthly  meetings  on  literature,  plilanthropy,  science, 
and  art. 

They  had  excellent  music  ;  native  instruments  and  selec- 
tions being  chosen  for  my  special  gratification.  The 
"  bandolon  "  is  the  chief  instrument  of  the  country,  and  is 
a  sort  of  guitar.  The  "  Jarabe,"  one  of  the  prettiest  of  the 
Mexican  dances,  sounded  delightful.  Of  course,  one  of  the 
musicians  was  blind  ;  they  always  are  in  that  country ! 

One  word  about  cakes.  The  most  delicious  confectionery 
of  every  sort  and  kind  appeared  at  that  tea-party,  and  I 
wondered  where  on  earth  they  all  came  from,  as  there  are 
no  real  cake  shops  in  Mexico. 

"  The  ladies  made  them  themselves,"  I  was  informed. 

This  was  a  delightful  piece  of  news,  and  the  American 
women  are  to  be  congratulated  upon  the  result.  How 
pleasant  it  is  to  find  clubwomen  ever  ready  and  able  to 
turn  their  hand  to  any  and  every  thing. 


\ 


Type  ol"  AJcxicau. 


Tojace  page  i6i.  J 


i6i 


CHAPTER  X. 

A    GLANCE    AT    MEXICAN    HISTORY. 

The  more  one  reads,  the  less  one  seems  to  understand  the 
history  of  ancient  Mexico.  It  is  all  shrouded  in  mystery. 
Every  historian  has  his  own  particular  theory,  but  no  two 
agree  ;  wherein,  perhaps,  lies  its  charm.  Only  one  fact 
appears  certain,  namely,  that  Mexico  and  her  people  are 
very,  very  old.      How  old?     Ah!  who  can  say? 

Even  I,  unlearned  though  I  am  in  such  matters,  could 
not  fail  to  be  struck,  again  and  again,  with  the  similarity  in 
things  Mexican  with  those  of  Egypt  and  China. 

Many  of  the  pyramids,  idols,  statues  and  often  the  in- 
habitants themselves,  are  distinctly  Egyptian  in  character. 
Again,  the  jade  beads  dug  up  amid  Aztec  remains  probably 
had  their  origin  in  China,  the  nearest  point  where  such  jade 
is  found.  The  bronze  fio^ure  exhumed  in  the  old  tomb 
at  Oaxaca,  is  undoubtedly  Chinese,  and  many  of  the  ancient 
coins  and  some  of  the  types  of  modern  Indians  clearly 
reproduce  Mongolian  types. 

The  more  one  reads,  the  more  bewildered  one  becomes. 
Where  did  those  Toltecs,  Aztecs  and  Zapotecs  originally 
come  from  ?  Is  it  three,  four,  or  five  thousand  years 
since  they  first  arrived  on   Mexican  soil  ? 

Some  writers  have  assumed  a  continuous  chain  of  islands 
between  the  east  and  the  west  ?  Others  suggest  lines  of 
communication  by  way   of  Egypt  across   Northern   Africa, 

II 


l62 


MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 


the  Canary  Islands,  and  the  lost  Atlantis.  In  that  case 
the  distances  would  not  have  been  very  great,  and 
open  boats  might  easily  have  accomplished  the  different 
voyages.  Open  boats  did  wondrous  things  in  days 
of  old. 

Or  ao;ain,  mioht  not  Mexico  have  been  in  communica- 
tion  with  China  ?  There  are  the  Sandwich  Islands,  the 
Philippines,  and  Japan,  may  there  not  have  been  other 
groups,  that  have  disappeared  owing  to  volcanic  eruption, 
formerly  so  rife  in   Mexico  and    Japan  ? 

In  any  case  ancient  Mexican  architecture  closely  re- 
sembles that  of  Japan,  which  seems  one  proof  the  more 
that  there  may  formerly  have  been  some  connection 
between  the  two  countries. 

All  writers  appear  agreed  that  the  Toltecs  were  the 
earliest  people  of  Mexico ;  how  far  back  they  go  no  one 
knows,  though  some  authorities  affirm  about  five  thousand 
years,      Prescott,  however,  says  : 


The  Toltecs  arrived  in  Anahuac 

They  abandoned  the  country  . 

The  Chichemecs  arrived 

The  Alcolhuans  arrived  about 

The  Mexicans  reached  Tula    . 

They  founded  Mexico  City 

Cortes  conquered  Mexico,  which  was  annexed  by  Charles  V 

of  Spain   .... 
Declaration  of  Independence  of  Mexico 


A.D. 
648 
IO5I 
1 170 
1200 
1 196 
1325 

1519 
1813 


The    Toltecs  were  a  highly  cultured  people.     The  names 

they    gave    to     districts     and      towns     remain     to-day    in 

Mexico.       They   had    two     written     languages,    one     used 

when  addressing  superiors,  the  other  for  the  vulgar,  as  in 

Java  and  Cambodia.       Castes  are  purely  Asiatic,  but  they 

existed  amongf  the  Toltecs,   which  ao-ain  shows   their  con- 
es '  o 

nection  with  some  outside  influence.     These   Toltecs  had 
their  priests,    warriors,   merchants  and  tillers    of   the    soil, 


A    GLANCE   AT  MEXICAN  HISTORY.  163 

whilst  land  was  held  in  common,   and    a  feudal  system   is 
apparent  with  both  the   Toltecs  and  the   Malays. 

"  Finally  the  worship  of  serpents  as  gods  of  wisdom,  like  Quetzalcoatl,  is  found  in 
India,  Greece,  China,  Japan,  and  particularly  in  Cambodia  and  Java.  To  us  these 
points  of  resemblance  are  more  than  mere  coincidences,  something  better  than  fortuitous 
analogies ;  they  seem  to  point  to  a  vast  and  novel  field  for  the  investigation  of 
archaeologists."* 

I  was  particularly  struck  by  a  fact  which  has  hitherto 
escaped  the  notice  of  writers. 

The  Toltecs  gave  wonderful  advice  to  their  brides, 
detailed  at  some  length  in  Charnay's  book,  and  strangely 
enough  that  advice,  and  the  form  in  which  it  is  given, 
resemble  the  ancient  Finnish  warnings  in  that  wonderful 
epic  poem,  the  Kalevala,  which  until  1835,  was  handed 
down  only  by  word  of  mouth,  although  the  greater  part  of 
it  is  pre-Christian. f 

The  Findlanders  are  Tartar  Mongolians.  It  may  be  a 
far-fetched  idea,  but  is  it  not  possible  that  those  Tartar 
Mongolians  of  Finland  sprang  from  the  same  Chinese 
branch  a  resemblance  to  which  is  so  often  found  in  Mexico  .'* 
The  warning  to  the  bride  is  certainly  similar. 

Little  is  really  known  of  Toltec  civilisation,  which  dates 
probably  from  the  sixth  to  the  fourteenth  century,  except 
that  as  regards  religion  they  were  mild  and  temperate. 
No  human  blood  ever  stained  their  altars.  Little  is  known 
probably  because  the  Aztecs  who  followed  them,  and 
retained  much  of  their  learning  and  art,  became  so 
powerful  that  they  have  left  traces  of  their  influence 
everywhere,  in  which  the  Toltec  civilisation  is  merged. 
These  Aztecs  or  Mexicans,  although  more  civilised, 
were,  unlike  the  orio-inal  milder  race  of  Toltecs,  a  cruel 
people. 

The  Aztecs  succeeded  after  many  hardships  in  finding  a 

*  "  Ancient  Cities  of  the  New  World  "  (Preface),  by  Desire  de  Charnay. 
t  "  Through  Finland  in  Carts,"  by  Mrs.  Alec  Tweedie. 

I  I* 


1 64  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

resting  place  on  the  muddy  islands  of  one  of  the  lakes, 
established  themselves,  and  founded  Tenochtitlan  (now 
Mexico  City)  in  1325.  Here  they  raised  a  temple 
to  their  god  Huitzilopochtli,  to  whom  they  frequently 
offered  human  sacrifices,  on  one  occasion,  it  is  said,  a 
Royal  Princess  being  the  victim  ! 

Human  sacrifice  was  a  matter  of  daily  occurrence  among 
the  Aztecs.  Historians  have  described  at  length  terrifying 
scenes  of  brutal  murder.  It  is  difficult  to  reconcile  such 
revolting  usages  with  a  people  that  had  made  great  strides 
in  civilisation. 

The  Aztecs  were  cannibals — not  in  the  coarsest  sense. 
They  did  not  feed  on  human  flesh  to  gratify  their  appetites, 
but  under  the  influence  of  the  priest  at  religious 
ceremonials.  The  body  of  a  victim  was  delivered  to  the 
warrior  who  had  slain  it  in  battle,  and  after  being 
dressed  for  table,  served  up  at  a  great  entertainment  to  the 
conqueror's  friends.  Members  of  both  sexes  attended  these 
banquets,  which  were  often  regal  and  otherwise  civilised 
in  character.  The  best  of  viands  and  delicious  beverages 
were  served.  Refinement  and  barbarism  seem  to  have 
walked  hand  in  hand  in  Mexico  during  the  days  of  the 
Aztecs,  as  indeed  they  do  to-day.  The  skulls  of  human 
victims  were  preserved  and  in  one  of  their  edifices 
Cortes,  when  he  conquered  Mexico,  counted  one  hundred 
and  thirty-six  thousand  ! 

Yet  these  people  recognised  the  existence  of  a  supreme 
Creator  and  Lord  of  the  Universe.  They  addressed  Him 
in  their  prayers  as  "  The  God  by  whom  we  live,"  "omni- 
present, that  knoweth  all  thoughts  and  giveth  all  gifts," 
"  without  whom  man  is  as  nothing,  invisible,  incorporeal,  one 
God  oi  perfect  pc J' fection  and  purity,  under  whose  wings  we 
find  repose  and  sure  defence." 

Prescott  says  : — 


A    GLANCE   AT  MEXICAN  HISTORY.  165 

"  They  imagined  three  separate  states  of  existence  in  the  future  life.  The  wicked, 
comprehending  the  greater  part  of  mankind,  were  to  expiate  their  sins  in  a  place  of 
everlasting  darkness.  Another  class  with  no  merit  than  having  died  of  certain  diseases 
capriciously  selected,  were  to  enjoy  a  negative  existence  of  indolent  contentment.  The 
highest  place  was  reserved,  as  in  most  warlike  nations,  for  the  heroes  who  fell  in 
battle,  or  in  sacrifice.  They  passed  at  once  into  the  presence  of  the  Sun,  whom  they 
accompanied,  with  songs  and  choral  dances,  in  his  bright  progress  through  the  heavens, 
and  after  some  years,  their  spirits  went  to  animate  the  clouds  and  singing  birds  of  beauti- 
ful plumage,  and  to  revel  among  the  rich  blossoms  and  odours  of  the  gardens  of  Paradise. 
Such  was  the  heaven  of  the  Aztecs  ;  more  refined  in  its  character  than  that  of  the  more 
polished  pagan,  whose  Elysium  reflected  only  the  martial  sports, or  sensual  gratifications, 
of  his  life." 

Their  law  of  succession  was  curious  ;  a  king  was  sup- 
posed to  rule  for  fifty-two  years  (their  cycle),  and  then  resign 
in  favour  of  his  son  ;   in  fact  a  regency  became  necessary. 

They  worshipped  an  unknown  God,  but  their  principal 
deities  were  the  Sun  and  the  Moon,  to  which  they  raised 
wonderful  pyramids,  and  "  Tonacatecuhtli,"  in  whose 
honour  various  temples  were  erected. 

Prescott's  "  History  of  Mexico"  reads  like  a  romance,  and 
we  only  regret  it  goes  no  farther  than  the  death  of  Cortes, 
for  no  such  charming  writer  has  arisen  to  chronicle  the 
history  of  the  country  during  the  last  three  hundred  and 
fifty  years. 

When  the  Aztecs  established  themselves  on  the  borders 
of  the  Lake,  they  noticed  a  large  eagle,  its  wings  open 
to  the  rising  sun,  perched  on  the  stem  of  a  prickly  pear 
holding  a  serpent  in  its  talons.  This  they  thought  a  favour- 
able omen,  and  determined  to  build  their  city  on  the  spot, 
calling  it  Teiiochtitlan,  which  city  is  now  known  by  the 
name  of  Mexico,  derived  from  the  war-god  Mexitli.  The 
devices  of  the  eao-le  and  the  cactus  form  the  arms  of  Mexico 
to-day,  and  a  similar  device  is  reproduced  on  the  cover  of 
this  volume,  whereon  are  also  depicted  the  subsequent  arms 
granted  by  Charles  V.  of  Spain  when  he  annexed  the 
country  in  1523,  and  the  still  later  badge  adopted  by  the 
Mexican   Republic  in   182 1. 


1 66  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

The  history  of  the  Aztecs  suggests  some  strong  points 
of  resemblance  to  that  of  the  ancient  Romans,  not  only  in 
their  military  successes,  but  in  the  policy  which  led  to  them. 
As  with  the  ancient  Romans,  military  success  was  their 
greatest  triumph,  their  Ruler  being  chosen  on  account  of 
his  victories.  He  was  crowned  in  great  pomp  ;  his  regal 
headgear  was  in  the  shape  of  a  mitre  decorated  with  gold, 
gems  and  feathers,  and  was  placed  on  his  head  by  one  of 
his  royal  allies.  In  the  earliest  times  the  ruler  was  styled 
King,  later  he  was  called  Emperor,  and  lived  with  great 
splendour  in  magnificent  palaces,  where  the  monarch  was 
aided  by  nobles  in  his  various  councils,  the  chief  of  which 
was  a  sort  of  privy  council. 

One  prominent  characteristic  of  the  Aztec  code  related 
to  slavery,  which  was  a  very  intricate  affair,  and  led  to  many 
complications. 

Various  indeed  are  the  eccentric  theories  about  the 
ancient  Mexican  people  ;  for  instance,  Lord  Kingsborough's 
great  book,  with  its  wonderful  illustrations,  is  written  to 
prove  that  the  ancient  Mexicans  were  descended  from  the 
ten  tribes  of  Israel. 

With  more  fatuity  Dr.  Augustus  Le  Plongeon  declares 
he  has  proofs  that  Yucatan  in  Southern  Mexico  was  the 
Garden  of  Eden,  and  original  home  of  Adam.  He  dis- 
covered the  grave  of  Abel,  the  charred  heart  of  the  victim, 
and  the  knife  used  by  Cain  in  that  deadly  conflict  ! 

All  this  is  but  an  Atigenblick,  as  our  German  friends 
would  say,  of  the  country  and  its  people  when  Cortes 
landed  in  15 19.  Spain,  when  Charles  V.  ascended  the 
throne  three  years  before,  occupied  the  first  position  in 
Europe,  to  which  it  had  attained  under  Ferdinand  and 
Isabella ;  but  Charles  was  almost  a  foreigner  to  Spain, 
and  the  great  colonisation,  begun  in  America  at  Cuba, 
waned  under  his  rule.  Hernando  Cortes,  born  1485,  was 
the  man  to  set  all   to  rights,   and  after  visitino-  Cuba   and 


A    GLANCE   AT  MEXICAN  HIS  TORY.  167 

Havanna,  he  landed  in  Mexico.  He  knew  no  Aztec, 
however,  and  consequently  could  only  communicate  with 
the  natives  by  signs.  He  came  across  a  wonderful  girl,  a 
young  slave  given  to  him  by  a  Tabascan  chief.  She  was  a 
Mexican,  and  the  Spaniards  called  her  Marina.  There 
was  a  certain  romance  in  her  early  life,  for  when,  after 
her  father,  a  rich  and  powerful  cacique,  died,  her  mother 
married  again  and  had  a  son,  the  mother  determined  to 
secure  her  daughter's  inheritance  for  him,  by  saying  Marina 
was  dead.  She  therefore  sold  her  for  a  slave,  and 
represented  the  dead  body  of  one  of  her  bondmaidens  as 
being  the  corpse  of  her  daughter  ! 

The  girl's  native  language  was  Mexican,  but  having 
learnt  various  dialects  during  her  residence  in  Tabasco, 
she  was  able  indirectly  to  communicate  with  Cortes. 
Ultimately  he  became  so  infatuated  by  her  beauty,  that  he 
made  her  his  mistress.  Her  knowledge  of  the  language 
and  customs  of  Mexico  often  extricated  the  Spaniards  from 
great  difficulties  and  perilous  situations. 

From  her,  Cortes  heard  of  the  powerful  Mexican  ruler 
called  Mocthe2izoma,  or  by  the  Europeans  Mo7itezuina,  who 
lived  in  what  is  now  Mexico  City  in  great  state.  Cortes 
informed  the  Indians  that  his  purpose  in  visiting  the 
country  was  friendly,  and  expressed  a  desire  to  see  the 
Aztec  governor,  but  although  the  latter  received  him  kindly, 
his  followers  continued  hostile,  and  riots  were  numerous 
among  the  soldiers. 

It  is  difficult  to  understand  Cortes'  reason  for  the  step 
he  finally  decided  to  take,  namely,  destroying  his  fleet  and 
thus  cutting  off  all  communication  with  his  friends  and 
allies  at  home.  Probably,  however,  it  was  a  wise  move, 
for  in  the  end,  partly  owing  to  Marina,  who  enlarged  upon 
the  greatness  and  splendour  of  the  Spaniards  to  Montezuma, 
Cortes  conquered  and  marched  triumphantly  on  to  success, 
and,  with  only  a  handful  of    followers,   annexed  the  country 


1 68  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

Spain  retained  as  one  of  her  richest  possessions  for  three 
centuries. 

Much  of  this  success  was  undoubtedly  due  to  the  horses. 
A  cavalry  charge  seems  imposing  even  when  only  made  by 
sixteen  animals,  provided  anything  so  strange  as  a  horse 
has  never  been  seen  before  !  The  Spanish  quadrupeds 
frightened  the  Mexicans,  and  no  doubt  secured  victory. 

The  description  given  by  various  writers  of  the  recep- 
tion of  Cortes  by  Montezuma  is  most  graphic,  and  it 
seems  almost  incredible  to  realise  its  magnificence.  One 
reads  that  seven  thousand  Aztecs  in  gorgeous  apparel, 
feather-bedecked,  marched  to  meet  the  Spaniards  ;  in  their 
midst  Montezuma  was  carried  in  his  robes  of  state  glitter- 
ing with  jewels,  especially  prominent  being  the  chalchivitl, 
a  green  stone  held  in  higher  estimation  by  the  Aztecs  than 
any  other. 

When  Cortes  and  his  followers  entered  the  city,  they 
were  amazed  at  its  grandeur,  palaces  abounded,  and  long 
rows  of  magnificent  streets  met  their  gaze  on  every  side. 
What  astonished  them  most,  perhaps,  was  the  vast  con- 
course of  people  ;  crowds  seemed  to  swarm  everywhere, 
lined  the  side-walks,  and  assembled  even  in  numbers  on 
the  housetops. 

There  was  long  continued  hostility,  but  little  by  little 
Cortes  vanquished  his  enemies,  till  Montezuma  acknowledged 
himself  a  feudatory  of  Spain.  His  career  had  hitherto  been 
a  glorious  one,  but  at  the  early  age  of  forty-one  he  died 
dethroned.  His  life  was  a  marvellous  example  of  how  even 
the  greatest  may  fall. 

There  is  a  curious  old  parchment  in  the  Mexican  archives 
describing  the  first  Council  held  in  the  City  of  Mexico  on 
Monday,  March  6th,  1524,  after  the  conquest  by  Spain. 

Cortes  is  described  therein  as  the  "  Governor  and  Captain 
of  this  New  Spain."  His  signature,  or  rather  initials,  are 
several  times    affixed.       The   document    so    signed  chiefly 


I 


A    GLANCE  AT  MEXICAN  HISTORY.  169 

relates  to  the  disposal  of  land,  or  petitions  for  its  purchase. 
Then  come  schedules  of  prices  to  be  fixed  for  further 
reference  on  such  articles  as  nails,  forks,  spoons,  saws, 
hammers,  chains,  scissors,  tables,  etc.  ;  followed  by  stated 
wages  for  carpenters  and  other  labourers.  The  ink  is 
faded,  and  the  writing  reminded  me  strangely  of  Shake- 
speare's will  at  Somerset  House,  which  was  written  much 
about  the  same  time.  The  lettering  is  similar,  although 
the  one  is  penned  in  English,  and  the  other  in  Spanish  ! 

There  are  also  several  interestino-  curiosities  in  the 
archives,  kindly  shown  me  by  the  Federal  Governor  and 
Mayor  of  the  town,  Seiior  Guillermo  de  Landa  y  Escan- 
don,  who  is  such  an  enthusiast  concerning  the  history  of 
his  country.  The  public  buildings  of  Mexico  are  hand- 
some, especially  the  National  Palace,  but  descriptions  of 
such  pertain  to  guide  books,  and  therefore  are  outside  the 
scope  of  this  story  of  travel. 

More  or  less  peaceable  times  followed  Cortes'  triumph. 
During  the  centuries  of  Spanish  sway,  things  went  pretty 
well,  but  the  country  did  not  develop.  Wars  with 
America,  troubles  with  France,  all  followed  in  their  turn. 

Revolutions  marked  the  i8th  and  19th  centuries,  and 
might  still  be  rife,  but  for  that  wonderful  man  General 
Diaz,  who  rose  from  the  people  apparently  to  quell  in- 
surrection, to  stop  bloodshed,  and  institute  law  and  order. 

With  his  advent  ancient  Mexico  died,  and  modern 
Mexico  was  born ! 

Professor  Frederick  Starr  of  Chicago,  whom  I  had  the 
pleasure  of  meeting,  has  been  working  for  years  among 
the  Indian  tribes  of  Mexico,  but  even  he  has  formed  no 
definite  conclusion  as  to  their  orioin.  Our  meeting  was 
followed  by  a  strange  coincidence.  Seeing  from  the  paper 
he  was  in  the  city,  I  sent  my  card  and  temporary  address, 
saying  I  should  be  glad  if  he  would  call  upon  me.  He 
came ;    I    was    much    impressed    by   his    enthusiasm — it    is 


I/O  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

enthusiasm    that    accompHshes    everything — and   while   we 
were  chatting,  some  letters  were  laid  upon  the  table. 

When  he  had  taken  his  departure,  the  first  envelope  I 
opened  was  one  written  twenty  days  previously,  by  our 
mutual  friend,  Edward  Clodd,  the  well-known  author  of 
"  The  Childhood  of  the  World,"     It  ran  as  follows  : 

Savile  Club,  London, 

7th  December,  1900. 
My  dear  Mrs.  Tweedie, 

When  dining  at  a  certain  hospitable  house  a  few  evenings  ago,  memory,  which 
advancing  years  has  sadly  impaired,  looked  back,  or  was  jolted  back,  to  some  promise 
made  to  you  as  to  a  note  of  introduction  to  Professor  Starr  of  Chicago,  and,  very  often, 
of  Mexico.  If  the  beneficent  spirits  bring  you  into  touch  with  that  eminent  authority 
on  all  matters  of  Mexican  origin,  will  you  please  express  to  him  the  pleasure  which 
his  far  too  brief  visit  to  London  gave  myself  and  other  members  of  the  Folk  Lore 
Society,  and  tell  him  that  the  debt  which  I  then  incurred,  can,  in  large  degree,  be 
liquidated  by  the  pleasure  he  will  derive  from  knowing  you,  and  doing  all  that  is  in 
his  power — and  that  is  a  good  deal — to  enlarge  your  knowledge  of  the  old  faith  and 
folk  lore  of  Mexico.  I  know  that  he  spends,  or  has  spent,  a  large  portion  of  each  year 
in  that  country,  and  that  you  will  have  little  trouble  in  learning  if  he  is  in  Mexico,  or  at 
his  home  in  Chicago. 

I  found  Mrs.  Harley  and  Olga  quite  well.  The  latter,  I  grieve  to  say,  referred  in 
tones  which  were  nothing  else  than  jeering  to  your  study  of  Spanish  ;  indeed,  she  had  a 
large  stock  of  Ollendorfian  phrases  with  the  irrelevant  use  of  which  she  credited  you  when 
you  make  your  bow  to  the  President.  It  would  greatly  rejoice  her  sisterly  heart  to  hear 
that  instead  of  saluting  him  "Buenos  dios,"  you  turned  over  the  wrong  page  and  said 
" Tiene  usted  suelto  ?  "  But  /turn  from  a  painful  theme  which  candour  alone  compels 
me  to  name, to  say  that  I  had  the  privilege  of  having  some  passages  from  your  letters  read 
to  me.  They  were  very  bright,  good  talk,  as  letters  should  be,  and  put  before  one,  in  a 
few  rapid  touches,  your  surroundings  and  impressions.  I  like  your  phrases.  Central 
America  you'll  no  doubt  find  full  of  charm,  for  there  stand  the  mysterious  Ruins  out  of 
which  Le  Plongeon  extracted  perhaps  the  most  fatuous  theories  that  antiquarian  ever 
formulated. 

We  are  having  hideous  weather  here.  Your  beloved  London  is  in  the  hands  of  the 
telephone  men,  who  are  cutting  huge  channels  along  the  big  streets,  and  flinging  the 
soil  on  the  roadway  so  that  the  rain  may  convert  it  into  chronic  deliquescence.  I  am 
revelling  in  Huxley's  Life,  which  is  very  well  done  by  his  eldest  son.  Punch  gave  you 
a  most  flattering  notice  last  week  in  reviewing  the  new  edition  of  the  Finland  Book. 

If  I  dreamed  that  this  scrawl  might  cause  you  to  think  that  I  expected  a  line  in  return, 
I  should  hesitate  to  send  it.  Writing  is  a  bore  when  one  is  away,  so  I  shall  hope  in  due 
time  to  hear  viva  voce   that  you  have  seen  the  Starr  in  the  West. 

Yours  sincerely, 

Edward  Ci.odd. 

Profe.ssor    Starr's   book,    entitled   "Indians    of  Southern 
Mexico,"  contains  beautiful  illustrations  of  tribal  traits.      He 


A    GLANCE  AT  MEXICAN  HISTORY.  171 

takes  photographs,  measurements  and  clay  models,  and  is 
making  a  marvellous  collection  of  the  characteristics  of  the 
different  tribes.  He  says  there  are  one  hundred  and  fifty 
different  languages — seventy-five  are  actually  written  down 
— to  say  nothing  of  the  numerous  dialects. 

He  adds  the  Aztecs,  of  whom  there  are  half  a  million 
to-day,  are  a  great  people.  It  was  their  ancestors  who 
erected  the  Xochicalco  fortress,  which  I  visited  later. 

The  Mixtecs  have  numerous  dialects,  and  are  most 
artistic,  particularly  in  pottery  ware.  A  woman  of  this  tribe 
was  the  grandmother  of  General  Diaz,  the  President  of 
Mexico. 

The  Zapotecs  are  a  wonderful  tribe  ;  their  women  are 
exceptionally  handsome.  They  have  a  curious  way  of 
building  their  houses  on  poles  in  mud.  Formerly  the 
Zapotecs  and  Aztecs  were  constantly  at  war.  These 
Zapotecs  built  the  famous  fortress  of  Mitla.  They  inhabit 
the  whole  State  of  Oaxaca  as  far  down  as  Tehuantepec. 

The  Otomi,  almost  the  oldest  people  in  Mexico,  are  said 
to  be  dull  and  stupid. 

The  Tlaxcalans  are  a  superior  type,  and  were  famous  in 
history.  The  success  of  Cortes  was  largely  due  to  their 
assistance. 

The  Juaves  who  are  supposed  to  have  come  from  Peru, 
still  go  about  naked,  as  do  several  other  tribes,  although  the 
law  forbids  their  entering  towns  unless  clothed. 

By  the  Government  Statistics  we  learn  that  five- 
twelfths  of  the  entire  population  is  Indian,  that  is,  almost 
half! 

Although  there  are  so  many  tribes,  and  so  many 
languages,  yet  the  tortilla  (Aztec  tlaxcal — bread  ground 
from  Indian  corn)  is  the  universal  food  amongst  them  all. 
Tamales,  a  sort  of  dumpling  made  from  corn  and  wrapped 
in  a  corn  husk,  is  almost  as  popular  and  universal. 

Returning   to    history,   few   persons    realise    that    several 


172    ,  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

EiiQ-lishmen  were  burned  to  death  In  Mexico  durino-  the 
Inquisition  introduced  there  by  Cortes. 
-  There  have  been  so  many  stories  about  the  Inquisition 
one  hesitates  to  add  to  their  number.  The  subject,  however, 
has  always  excited  interest  and  been  the  cause  of  passion  and 
exaggeration,  therefore  it  is  an  important  factor  in  history 
which  must  be  alluded  to.  It  is  without  any  bias  against  the 
Roman  Catholic  Church  that  this  short  sketch  is  written. 

"  Offences"  against  the  Church  were  not  at  that  time  the 
only  matters  of  which  the  Holy  Office  took  cognizance. 
-Bigamy  and  laxity  of  morals  both  among  the  clergy  and 
4aity,  were  punished,  or  to  be  more  correct,  "condemned" 
by  zealous  ecclesiastics  ;  the  sentences  being  carried  out  by 
the  civil  or  lay  authorities  represented  by  an  official  rejoicing 
in  the.  name  of  a  Coi^regidor. 

The  extraordinary  want  of  logic  which  throughout 
characterised  the  proceedings  of  this  Tribunal — often  using 
brutal  and  barbarous  methods  to  inculcate  the  doctrines  of 
the  gentle  Nazarene — is  well  exemplified  in  the  case  of 
an  Aztec  Indian  victim,  who  in  1539  was  burnt  alive  as  a 
punishment  for  having  made  huvian  sacrifices  to  his  God ! 
This  man,  as  well  as  many  other  natives,  must  have  found 
it  difficult  to  distinguish  the  difference  between  a  human 
sacrifice  to  Tezicat,  and  an  Auto-da-Fe  of  which  he  himself 
was  a  victim.  The  pomp  and  circumstances  surrounding 
the  latter,  accompanied  as  they  were  by  all  kinds  of  religious 
ceremonies — the  victims  dressed  out  in  their  Sambenitos — a 
garb  of  infamy — the  presence  of  Civil,  Military  and  Ecclesi- 
astical authorities,  the  chanting  of  Litanies  and  Psalms, 
procession  of  Nuns  and  Monks' — must  have  conveyed  the 
impression  to  the  Indians  that  they  were  assisting  at  a 
sacrifice   to   the   God   of  their  Conquerors. 

Indeed,  in  this  respect,  but  for  the  actual  number  of  the 
victims,  Mexico  seems  to  have  gained  little  by  the  con- 
quest of  Cortes  during  the  years  that  the  Spanish  Domina- 


A    GLANCE   AT  MEXICAN  HISTORY.  171 

tion  lasted.  For  in  the  great  Cathedral  square  the  sacrifices 
of  the  Aztecs  were  continued  in  the  form  of  Auto-da-Fes 
by  the  Illustrissimo  Senoi'es  Inquisidores. 

Don  Luis  Obregon,  in  the  second  volume  of  his  interest- 
ing "  Sketches  of  Old  Mexico,"  compiled  from  carefully  ob- 
tained data,  makes  the  following  computation  :  From  the 
institution  of  the  Inquisition  to  the  final  overthrow  of  Span- 
ish power  in  Mexico,  "  790  persons  were  reconciled  to  the 
Church  by  means  of  the  Holy  Ofifice  "  ;  that  is  to  say,  were 
not  strangled  or  burnt.  It  does  not  mean  they  escaped  tor- 
ture, imprisonment  in  the  mines,  being  sold  into  slavery,  or 
other  punishment  according  to  the  extent  of  their  heresy  or 
the  degree  of  the  crime  of  which  they  were  accused.  Fifty- 
one  persons  were  actually  put  to  death  by  strangulation  or 
burned  at  the  stake,  and  109  were  burnt  in  effigy.  Regard- 
ing these  last,  it  is  more  than  probable  that  they  themselves 
succumbed  to  the  treatment  received  in  their  secret  prisons 
at  the  hands  of  the  Inquisitors. 

Adventurous  beings  who,  even  so  early  as  the  middle  of 
the  sixteenth  century,  searched  for  fortune  in  Mexico,  did 
not  always  escape  from  the  clutches  of  the  Santo  Officio  as 
established  in  the  Valley  of  Anahuac. 

In  looking  through  the  list  of  names,  copied  by  Father 
Joseph  Picardo,  of  the  Oratory  of  Saint  Philip  Neri,  from  the 
Sambenitos  on  which  they  were  inscribed,  we  find  that  in 
1560,  in  the  Cathedral  of  Mexico,  by  order  of  His  Grace 
Alonzo  de  Montufar,  second  Archbishop  of  Mexico,  in  a 
private  Auto-da-Fe,  the  first  of  the  Englishmen,  named 
John,  was  "  reconciled'"  to  the  Cliurch. 

On  February  28th,  1574,  what  is  known  as  the  first 
Auto-da-Fe  in  Mexico — probably  because  it  was  the  first  to 
take  place  under  the  auspices  of  a  duly  organised  Inquisi- 
tion— was  held  with  great  pomp  and  ceremony^  in  what  is 
now  the  Zocalo,  or  great  Plaza  to  the  south  of  the 
Cathedral.     Special  arrangements  were   macfe  for  the   pro- 


174  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

cession  of  the  victims,  who  were  dressed  in  yellow 
Sambenitos,  on  the  back  and  front  of  which  red  crosses 
were  painted.  An  eye-witness  relates  "the  poor  heretics 
were  not  allowed  to  sleep  owing  to  the  preparations. 
Twenty-one  pestilent  Lutherans  met  their  death  by 
fire  (brazero)  on  a  pile  of  stones  (quemadaro) "  in  what 
is  now  a  public  square,  near  which,  at  the  back  of  the 
Cathedral,  so  many  Aztec  treasures  have  lately  been 
dug  up. 

The  tribunal  of  the  Holy  Office  was  then  lodged  in  what 
is  now  the  School  of  Medicine ;  the  heretics  proceeded 
from  thence  through  the  Plaza  de  Santo  Domingo — in  the 
Church  of  which  is  the  strano-e  life-sized  wooden  Christ  in 
bed — to  the  Cathedral  Square.  So  great  was  the  con- 
course of  spectators  that  the  mounted  minions  of  the 
Inquisitors  had  much  difficulty  in  forcing  their  way  through 
the  crowd. 

Large  sums  were  spent  in  preparing  the  Zocalo  for  the 
event.  All  the  authorities  were  invited.  The  Viceroy, 
Don  Martin  Enriquez  de  Almanza,  and  his  Council  were  on 
the  platform  with  the  Inquisitors  Don  Pedro  Moya  de 
Contreras  and  Don  Alonzo  Fernandez  de  Bonilla,  all  in 
gala  costume.  A  sermon  was  addressed  to  the  audience 
and  principal  actors  in  the  drama  by  the  Bishop  of  Tlaxala. 
Five  Protestants  were  put  to  death  and  'j'iy  sentenced  for 
various  offences,  polygamy,  necromancy,  the  performance 
of  Jewish  rites — Jews  being  particular  objects  of  persecution. 
The  banishment  of  the  Jews  and  Moors  by  royal  order  in 
1527  really  began  the  Inquisition. 

On  the  day  above  mentioned,  among  those  burnt  at  the 
stake  for  their  fortitude  in  their  religious  opinions,  we  find 
John  Ribley,  a  native  of  "  Desambra  "  (Dewsbury  .-*),  Peter 
Momfrie,  and  William  Cornelius,  the  latter  a  native  of 
Cork.  The  following  English  names  appear  among  the 
"  reco7iciled'"  : — 


A    GLANCE  AT  MEXICAN  HISTORY 


175 


Williams,  a  native  o£  Bristol. 
Philip  Miles,  a  native  of  London. 
John  Wrenington,  of  Windsor. 
Morgan  Tillert,  a  Welshman. 
William  Gollan,  of  Axnart  (?). 
John  Lee  of  Sebria  (?). 
John  Cree,  of  London. 
William  Grifon,  of  Gloucester. 


John  Gullens,  of  Bristol. 
John  of  Mun,  of  Hutton-Loo. 
John  Breton,  a  carpenter,  of  Derby. 
John  Brown,  of  Thurles,  in  Ireland. 
John  Evans,  of  the  city  of  Griego  (?). 
John  Evren,  of  Bristol,  and 
Robert  Pliton,  of  Plymouth. 


These  names  were  kindly  supplied  by  Mr.  Lucien  Jerome, 
England's  able  Consul.  The  Inquisition  was  only  sup- 
pressed in  18 1 3,  when  the  tablets  bearing  the  names  of  the 
victims  were  removed  from  the  Cathedrals. 

All  this  seems  very  terrible,  and  yet  we  must  remember 
that  in  those  days  much  the  same  thing  was  going  on  in 
Europe  in  the  name  of  religion  ! 


176 


CHAPTER  XL 

IS    A    BULL-FIGHT    CRUEL  ? 

The  ordinary  Sunday  afternoon  entertainment  in  Mexico 
is  either  a  cock  or  bull-fight.  Ladies  seldom  attend  either, 
but  the  people  dearly  love  both,  and  children — boys  and 
girls  of  five  and  seven  years  old — are  taken  to  applaud  or 
hiss,  as  their  baby  minds  incline.  Of  course  they  grow  up 
to  think  such  sport — or  barbarity — the  acme  of  bliss.  It  is 
in  their  blood,  and  it  will  be  many  a  long  day  before  the 
'populace  learns  otherwise. 

"  Would  you  go  to  a  bull-fight  ?  "  I  was  asked  one  day. 

"  Certainly.  I  wish  to  see  the  national  sport  of  the 
country,  the  ring,  the  crowd,  everything ;  but  whether  I 
shall  like,  tt  or  not  remains  to  be  seen." 

In  accordance  with  which  statement,  after  lunching  with 
Captain  Barron,  a  well-known  Englishman  living  in  Mexico 
City,  our  party  drove  off  behind  a  splendid  pair  of  horses, 
and  a  smart  English  coachman,  to  a  box  at  the  Plaza 
de  Toros. 

It  would  be  difficult  to  say  what  my  feelings  were  as  we 
neared  the  famous  ring ;  I  wanted  to  see  a  bull-fight,  and 
yet  I  almost  feared  to  do  so,  since  dreadful  scenes  are 
sometimes  enacted  thereat. 

Vendors  of  oranges,    nuts,   tortillas,   and    other   forms    of 
food,  lined   the  roadway  ;  boys  and    men  rushed  at  every 
passer-by,   trying  to  sell   tickets,    "  sol,"   or   "  sombra,"  i.e., 
the  sunny  or  shady  side  of  the  ring,  and  a  general  air  of 


It  « 


Matadors  in  front — mounted  Picadores  behind. 


Entrance  of  procession  for  the  i)ull  fight. 


S^To  face  page  176. 


IS   A  BULL-FIGHT  CRUEL?  177 

festivity  pervaded  the  scene,  on  which  frowned  two  grand 
sedate  old  volcanoes,  from  the  summits  of  which  snow  had 
descended  far  down  into  the  valley,  owing  to  the  extra- 
ordinary coldness  of  the  weather. 

Crowds  thronged  the  thoroughfare  ;  electric  trams,  and 
others  drawn  by  mules,  kept  constantly  arriving,  with  pas- 
sengers standing  down  the  centre  of  the  cars,  or  hanging  like 
flies  to  the  outside  platforms.  Carriages,  carts,  vans,  every- 
thing was  there,  all  the  occupants  eager  for  the  fray. 

As  we  alighted  in  front  of  a  primitive  sort  of  entrance, 
without  a  turnstile,  and  so  narrow  that  there  was  barely 
room  for  an  ordinary  person  to  squeeze  through  the  barrier, 
my  host  exclaimed,  "  Here  we  are."  At  the  same  time  he 
showed  his  flaming  yellow  ticket,  for  Box  22,  containing 
eight  seats,  each  one  being  marked  and  perforated  separately, 
so  that  it  could  be  torn  off,  and  the  occupants  come  in  and 
out  as  they  pleased. 

The  ring  resembled  an  enormous  circus,  probably  some 
hundred  feet  in  diameter.  In  the  centre  was  a  sanded 
space  for  the  bull-fight,  encircled  by  a  wooden  barrier  six 
feet  high,  over  which  the  men  jumped — to  escape  Mr. 
Bull  in  wild  pursuit — with  the  greatest  agility  and  grace. 
There  was  a  second  barrier  beyond,  behind  which  the  spec- 
tators took  their  seats,  that  rose  tier  after  tier,  culminating 
in  the  boxes  at  the  top  of  the  arena. 

"Could  any  bull  really  jump  out  of  the  ring  .-^  "  I  asked, 
amazed  at  the  place. 

"  Certainly,"  was  the  reply,  and  sure  enough  bull  No.  2, 
later  in  the  afternoon,  jumped  the  barrier,  not  only  once, 
but  three  times.  Up  started  the  sightseers  just  above 
the  beast,  each  thinking  he  would  be  gored,  but  the  bull 
was  quickly  back  in  the  ring  again.  At  intervals  round 
this  passage-way — really  made  for  the  safety  of  the  bull- 
fighters— were  swinging-doors,  and  the  moment  the 
animal  jumped   over    the    barrier,   the    doors    before    and 

12 


i;8        '  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

behind  him  were  closed,  and  another  was  opened  on  to 
the  ring,  through  which  he  was  driven  back  to  fight  the 
p'ame  to  the  bitter  end. 

We  arrived  early,  that  I  might  see  the  arena  properly. 
On  our  left  was  the  President's  box — not  the  President  of 
Mexico,  but  the  President  of  bull-fights,  one  of  the  muni- 
cipal authorities  sent  to  represent  law  and  order,  and  settle 
public  disturbances,  which  are  by  no  means  uncommon  on 
those  exciting  occasions.  His  entrance  was  the  signal  for 
the  band  to  strike  up,  and  it  continued  to  play  at  intervals 
during  the  performance. 

Below  the  President  was  a  chair  on  another  da'is,  for  the 
"  Torero  " — an  old  and  experienced  bull-fighter  who  acts  as 
umpire,  decides  when  a  bugle  shall  be  sounded  for  the 
horse  to  be  taken  out,  or  when  the  matador  shall  come 
forward  to  kill  the  bull.  The  Torero,  therefore,  is  a  very 
important  personage.  Below  him  was  a  doorway  for  the  use 
of  men  and  horses  taking  part  in  the  entertainment. 

Opposite  to  the  President  was  another  large  doorway, 
through  which  the  procession  entered.  It  may  be  well  to 
remark  here,  that  soldiers  were  stationed  everywhere  ;  an 
entire  regiment  seemed  to  be  present,  for  between  the 
spectators,  at  frequent  intervals,  one  caught  the  glint  of  a 
a  gun,  and  not  infrequently  their  services  are  called  into 
requisition,  for  nothing  excites  a  Mexican  more  than  his 
national  game,  and  disturbances  often  occur. 

There  are  several  performers  in  a  bull-ring. 

The  Capeadores  wave  their  cloaks  in  front  of  the  bull 
to  excite  him,  or  to  distract  his  attention  as  he  rushes  wildly 
after  some  one.  They  are  dressed  in  beautiful  costumes  of 
varied  colours,  with  gold  or  silver  embroideries,  and  wear 
those  queer  black  hats  and  pig-tails  we  know  from  pictures. 
Their  cloaks  of  silk  are  seldom  red,  but  rather  of  other 
colours,  with  brighter  linings,  and  their  dexterity  is  de- 
lightful   to    witness.       Everything    the    capeador  does     is 


'icadiir  and  I  iliiidldldcil  hi 


A  Inillianl  fcal  !))•  llic  IJandcrillcro. 


To  face  Inline  179.] 


IS  A    BULL-FIGHT   CRUEL?  179 

graceful,  exciting  and  sportsmanlike,   and  it  is  worth  going- 
miles  to  see  the  valour  and  readiness  he  displays. 

The  Picadores  are  the  horsemen.  Theirs  is  a  loathsome 
occupation.  They  collect  miserable  crocks,  only  fit  for  the 
knacker's  yard,  but  instead  of  mercifully  ending  their  de- 
crepit old  age  with  a  pole-axe,  the  picadores  blindfold  the 
poor  animals  and  take  them  into  the  ring  to  be  gored  to 
death  by  an  infuriated  bull. 

Imagine  any  civilized  people  allowing  a  poor  dumb, 
blindfolded  horse  to  be  slashed  and  spurred  forward  to 
certain  death,  on  the  pointed  horns  of  a  maddened  bull. 
Fourteen  horses  were  killed  that  day  according  to  the 
newspaper  report,  and  probably  out  of  the  five  or  six 
thousand  spectators,  I  was  almost  the  only  person  present 
who  even  mentally  denounced  such  butchery  as  vile. 
I  love  sport,  but  I  hate  and  detest  cruelty,  which  this 
undoubtedly  is. 

The  Banderilleros  are  wonderful.  They  are  the  men 
who  stick  darts  in  the  bull's  shoulder  ;  it  is  not  kind,  yet 
hardly  cruel,  for  the  points  are  only  like  large  fish-hooks, 
which,  while  irritating,  do  not  actually  torture  the  animal. 
I  admired  these  banderilleros  enormously  ;  they  hold  a  stick 
a  couple  of  feet  long,  and  gaily  decorated  with  paper,  in  each 
hand,  the  spikes  being  at  the  opposite  end.  After  waiting 
for  the  bull  to  charge,  they  rush  right  up  to  him,  and  plant 
the  two  darts  in  his  shoulders,  deftly  jumping  aside  when 
he  would  fain  toss  them.  This  is  more  like  sport,  and  their 
agility  and  daring  are  splendid. 

The  Matador  is  the  grandest  gentleman  of  all.  To  his 
lot  falls  the  feat  of  killing  the  bull. 

The  music  ceased,  a  blare  of  trumpets,  yells  of  joy  from 
the  assembly,  a  door  opposite  the  President  was  flung  wide, 
and  the  proceedings  began. 

The  Cuadrilla  or  procession  of  performers  is  really 
picturesque,  and   quite    unique  ;  it   belongs   to  the  bull-ring 

12* 


i8o  MEXICO  AS  I  SAW  IT. 

and  is  seen  nowhere  else.  Those  taking  part  in  the  bull- 
fight dress  and  form  in  procession  just  as  they  did  in  the 
days  of  ancient  Spain,  when  Tauromachy  was  at  its  height. 

First  of  all  the  Alguacil  entered  the  ring  alone.  Being 
a  sort  of  chamberlain,  he  was  mounted  on  a  most  beautiful 
bay  horse,  adorned  with  a  red  velvet  saddle-cloth  em- 
broidered in  gold,  and  scarlet  reins,  while  he  himself  wore 
a  black  velvet  suit,  and  a  large  black  velvet  hat  ornamented 
with  scarlet  plumes.  As  he  pranced  round  the  ring,  he 
reminded  me  of  Vandyck's  famous  picture  of  Charles  I., 
only  the  horse  should  have  been  white  instead  of  bay.  The 
more  the  audience  clapped,  shouted  and  whistled,  the  more 
he  danced.  Finally  he  stopped  beneath  the  President's  box, 
and  taking  off  his  hat,  which  he  held  at  arm's  length,  begged 
to  know  if  the  performance  might  begin. 

Assent  being  given,  the  golden  key  of  the  door  behind 
which  the  six  bulls  were  hidden  was  thrown  down,  and 
gracefully  caught  by  him  in  his  hat. 

He  bowed,  the  band  struck  up,  and  off  he  pranced  to 
fetch  his  "cuadrilla,"  the  procession  literally  shining  golden 
in  the  rays  of  the  sun. 

First  rode  our  friend  the  Chamberlain,  followed  by  the 
three  gorgeously  equipped  matadores,  each  of  whom  was 
destined  to  kill  two  bulls  that  afternoon.  Then  came  the 
picadores  on  their  awful,  broken-kneed,  raw-boned  old 
horses — such  a  contrast  to  the  splendid  steed  which 
headed  the  procession — followed  by  the  capeadores  with 
their  capes,  and  the  banderilleros  with  their  darts,  A 
team  of  six  white  mules  with  red  trappings  came  next  ; 
they  were  intended  subsequently  to  drag  out  the  dead 
bulls  or  horses.  Some  men  with  whips,  and  a  butcher 
with  his  merciful  knife,  completed  the  cavalcade. 

As  they  marched  round  the  ring,  they  really  looked  most 
picturesque ;  the  sun  shone  brilliantly  on  the  gorgeous 
hues  of  their  clothing  and    capes,   and    magnificently   rich 


IS  A    BULL-FIGHT  CRUEL?  i8i 

golden  embroideries.  Certainly,  the  procession  alone  was 
worth  going  far  to  see.  There  was  something  beautiful 
and  romantic  about  it  all  ;  the  men  were  young  and  hand- 
some, well-made  and  brave,  and  courage  in  equal  combat 
between  man  and  beast  is  to  be  admired,  at  least,  I  am 
"  sportsman  "  enough  to  think  so. 

After  being  well  scrutinised,  and  enthusiastically  ap- 
plauded by  the  audience,  they  all  left  the  ring,  with  the 
exception  of  the  capeadores,  who  were  to  play  with  the 
bull,  and  the  banderilleros,  whose  role  came  later. 

A  man  in  Mexican  dress,  who  wore  the  tight  trousers  of 
the  country,  so  tight  the  stranger  wondered  if  he  had  been 
poured  into  them,  stepped  forward.  His  suit  was  made 
entirely  of  black — as  if  he  had  already  donned  mourning  for 
the  death  of  the  bull.  He  took  the  key  from  the  Chamber- 
lain, and  having  watched  the  procession  safely  out  of  the  ring, 
went  to  the  door  exactly  opposite  to  us,  which  was  midway 
between  the  two  entrances,  and  unlocked  it,  carefully 
concealing  himself  behind  the  wooden  door  when  he 
opened  it,  to  let  the  hero  of  the  hour  emerge. 

In  a  former  chapter  I  described  the  capture  on  the 
open  prairie  of  wild  bulls  for  the  fights  ;  that  was  the 
prologue,  this  the  final  scene.  Mr.  Toro,  after  being 
lassoed,  and  driven  into  a  small  box  just  big  enough  to 
hold  him,  travelled  by  train  to  Mexico  City,  where  he 
had  been  kept  in  some  dark  place  behind  the  bull-ring, 
until  forced  into  a  still  darker  chamber,  just  before  the 
commencement  of  the  fioht. 

At  the  last  moment  a  huge  rosette  had  been  fixed  in  his 
shoulder  by  a  man  from  above,  by  means  of  a  little  hole 
such  as  coals  are  shot  through  to  cellars  in  England,  the 
spike  of  the  pin  no  doubt  irritating  him  before  his  sudden 
transition  from  darkness  to  brilliant  sunlioht.      This  rosette 

o 

of  colour  represents  the  "  hacienda  "  from  which  he  comes, 
and  everyone  in  the  ring  knows  who  was  his  former  owner, 


1 82  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

just  as  a  man  on  the  race-course   can  tell  the  proprietor  of 
each  horse,  by  the  colours  worn  by  the  jockey. 

The  door  swung  back,  and  out  rushed  bull  No.  i.  He 
galloped  into  the  middle  of  the  ring,  and  then  stood  still 
as  though  bewildered  with  the  noise  and  light.  A  burst 
of  applause  followed  ;  he  lifted  his  grand  head,  snorted, 
and  seeing  an  inviting  capeador  near  by,  rushed  at  him 
full  tilt.  The  cape  was  flourished  before  his  eyes — which 
a  bull  always  closes  at  the  moment  of  charging — and  the 
capeador  jumped  aside. 

Another,  and  yet  another  assault.  It  was  most  exciting 
to  see  that  grand  bull,  notwithstanding  his  strength  and 
vivacity,  deftly  evaded  by  those  slim  youths.  Occasionally 
the  animal  would  run  them  right  up  to  the  barrier,  over 
which  they  nimbly  jumped,  when  we  heard  the  horns  of 
Toro  strike  the  wooden  boards,  as  he  wildly  tossed  the 
cape  thrown  at  his  head,  while  the  white  legs  of  the 
capeador  disappeared  over  the  paling. 

It  almost  seemed  as  if  the  bull  would  win,  so  close  was 
the  contest,  but  man  triumphed  all  through  on  that 
occasion,  though  he  does  not  always  come  off  so  well,  for 
many  persons  lose  their  lives  in  the  bull-ring.  After  five 
minutes'  excellent  sport,  the  bugle  sounded,  and  a  couple  of 
miserable  horses  were  ridden  to  the  front  of  the  ring.  The 
picadores  were  dressed  in  leather  suits  with  their  legs  all 
stiffly  padded,  to  save  them  from  the  horns  of  the  bull,  and 
in  their  hands  they  carried  lances  ten  feet  long,  with  which 
to  ward  off  the  monster.  I  suppose  it  needs  some  courage 
to  be  a  picador,  for  if  his  horse  be  really  killed  beneath  him, 
he  has  no  cape  with  which  to  divert  the  bull,  and  is, 
moreover,  too  heavily  dressed  to  move  with  ease,  and  if 
he  fall,  can  hardly  rise  without  assistance  ;  nevertheless, 
he  rides  fearlessly  up  to  the  infuriated  animal  which  madly 
lashes  his  tail,  and  waits  the  picador's  charge.  It  may  need 
courage,  but  oh  !  what  a  fearful  employment — to  sit  calmly 


IS   A    BULL-FIGHT   CRUEL?  183 

on  a  wretched  old  horse,  with  a  cloth  tied  over  his  eyes,  to 
spur  and  goad  it  on  to  death,  from  which  it  has  not  the 
smallest  chance  of  escape. 

Is  a  bull-fight  cruel  ?  Yes,  a  thousand  times  yes,  so 
long  as  such  horse  torture  is  allowed  ;  were  that  omitted, 
it  would  be  an  equal  contest  between  man  and  beast,  until 
the  final  stroke  of  the  matador's  sword,  which  is  surely 
as  merciful  as  the  butcher's  pole-axe. 

I  do  not  know  what  happened  to  the  horses  after  the 
first  charo-e,  for  I  went  to  the  back  of  the  box  ;  I  could 
not  look,  it  made  me  sick  even  to  think  of  such  cruelty  ;  so 
I  waited  until  I  heard  that  the  poor  brutes  had  been  led 
away,  bleeding  unto  death,  to  have  their  days  ended 
outside. 

Some  pretty  play  followed.  The  bugle  sounded  again, 
and  one  of  the  banderilleros  stepped  forward  into  the  middle 
of  the  ring.  He  stood  still,  facing  Mr.  Toro,  until  that  gen- 
tleman chose  to  charge,  looking  the  very  impersonation  of 
manly  grace,  his  arms  lifted  high  in  the  air,  his  banderillas, 
one  in  each  hand,  held  at  the  extremest  end  from  the  dart. 
It  was  quite  a  long  time  before  the  bull  would  charge  ;  he 
dashed  at  everyone  else,  but  carefully  avoided  the  owner 
of  the  darts,  as  if  he  knew  their  purpose ;  sudd-enly,  as 
if  forgetting,  he  rushed  full  tilt  at  his  waiting  enemy. 
The  man  had  no  cape,  no  means  of  warding  off  those 
deadly  horns,  yet  he  never  flinched,  and  only  stepped  aside 
to  let  the  bull's  head  graze  his  legs,  while  he  calmly  and 
gracefully  lifted  his  arms  on  high,  and  planted  his  banderillas 
in  the  beast's  shoulder.  It  was  a  most  artistic  performance, 
perhaps  the  most  skilful  of  all,  though  the  death-stroke  of 
a  matador   is  considered  the  finest  effect  in  a  bull-rino-. 

Six,  or  sometimes  eight,  banderillas  are  stuck  into  a  bull 
before  the  siq-nal  is  o-iven  for  the  arrival  of  the  matador, 
w^ho,  when  he  enters,  arrayed  in  some  pale  satin  and  gold 
embroidery,   stands  and  bows  to  the  President.      The  first 


1 84  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

matador's  pink  jacket  and  knee-breeches  must  have  cost 
a  large  sum,  while  his  elaborately-embroidered  shirt,  and 
handsome  scarlet  silk  sash,  completed  a  truly  gorgeous 
costume.  White  stockings  and  small  black  slippers  were, 
it  seemed,  de  rigueur,  and,  apparently,  no  head  covering, 
for  after  bowing  to  the  President,  receiving  his  commands, 
and  dedicating  the  bull  to  some  fair  lady's  name,  he  threw 
his  hat  to  the  audience  to  be  kept  until  his  return. 

He  held  a  scarlet  muleta  or  "  red  rag,"  kept  open  by 
a  piece  of  stick  inside,  while  hidden  in  the  folds  was 
the  fatal  sword.  Mr,  Bull  must  not  see  its  glint  until  the 
last  moment.  The  matador  cannot  play  his  cape  as  the 
capeadors  do,  for  it  hides  the  long  thin  sword,  and 
therefore,  so  to  speak,  he  really  takes  his  life  in  his  hand. 

The  bull,  who  hitherto  had  seemed  thoroughly  to  enjoy 
the  performance,  became  more  uneasy,  after  the  darts  had 
been  placed  in  his  shoulder,  and  appeared  determined,  if 
there  must  be  a  fight,  it  should  be  a  fight  to  death  ;  his 
strength  and  instinct  pitted  against  man's  skill. 

Alone — for  all  others  stood  back — that  matador  advanced 
into  the  middle  of  the  ring  towards  the  bull ;  his  play  was 
very  clever. 

A  matador  is  no  butcher,  and  his  capacity  is  gauged  by 
the  skill  and  despatch  with  which  he  kills  his  victim. 
There  is  one  spot  in  the  back  of  the  bull's  neck  where  a 
"  pinchazos "  or  sword-thrust  means  sudden  death,  either 
by  cutting  the  spinal  cord,  or  piercing  the  heart.  Now 
in  order  to  strike  that  point,  it  is  necessary  for  the  animal 
to  rush  absolutely  straight  at  his  adversary,  and  with  his 
head  down.  Frequently  the  bull  rushes  in  every  conceiv- 
able direction  but  the  right  one  ;  often,  if  he  sees  the 
gleam  of  steel  he  will  not  charge  at  all,  and  therefore  it  is 
that  the  niatador  is  obliged  to  conceal  his  weapon  until 
the  last  moment. 

It    was    most    thrillinfj   to   see    the    bull     and    the     man 


The  Alsjuacil,  or  ChaniliL-rlain  ni  the  Imll-riiu 


Dcalli  of  tlic  Imll. 


To /aw  page  185.] 


IS   A    BULL-FIGHT  CRUEL?  185 

parrying  each  other  as  a  pair  of  good  fencers  might  do. 
There  was  nothing  cruel  about  it,  for  the  matador  never 
struck  until  he  was  sure  his  blow  would  be  fatal. 

Look  at  them  !  The  bull  stands  motionless,  his  head 
down,  ready  for  his  final  rush  ;  the  matador,  only  seven  or 
eight  feet  away  from  him,  remains  perfectly  motionless.  The 
stillness  was  oppressive.  This  was  the  moment  of  wildest 
excitement  ;  both  man  and  beast  stood  as  though  turned 
to  stone  ;  then  slowly,  and  almost  imperceptibly,  his  eyes 
fixed  steadily  on  the  bull,  the  matador  quietly  brought  his 
sword  from  under  his  cloak,  and  holding  it  straight  out 
before  him,  with  elbow  bent  to  ensure  correct  aim,  the 
point  within  four  or  five  feet  of  the  bull's  head,  he  waited. 
Neither  moved,  the  brute  seemed  paralyzed  under  the  man's 
gaze,  the  man  as  still  as  a  marble  statue. 

A  dead  silence  ensued,  during  which  we  wondered  which 
would  win. 

The  man  at  first  did  not  move.  Then  he  seemed 
electrified.  Determination  shot  from  his  eyes.  He  raised 
himself  on  his  toes.  A  rush,  and  on  came  the  bull. 
One  thrust,  and  deep  down  into  his  neck  went  that  well- 
aimed  sword,  nothing  but  the  golden  handle  remaining 
visible.  It  was  a  master-stroke.  The  silence  of  that  vast 
multitude  was  so  oreat  it  could  almost  be  heard.  The  bull 
Stood  for  an  instant  as  though  petrified,  then  he  tottered  a 
few  steps  towards  the  side  of  the  ring  ;  he  was  senseless  now. 
Twisting  round  as  though  trying  to  walk,  he  fell  on  his 
knees,  bowed  his  head  in  the  dust,  rolled  over  and  died. 

It  was  all  over  in  a  few  seconds  ;  the  matador's  stroke 
had  done  its  work,  and  done  it  courageously  and  humanely. 
The  bull  lay  dead  at  the  victor's  feet.  There  was  nothing 
cruel  in  that. 

Yells  of  applause  suddenly  filled  the  air  ;  hats  were 
thrown  into  the  arena,  cigars  and  flowers  quickly  followed, 
and  a  perfect  ovation  greeted   the  matador's  success.      He 


1 86  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

deserved  it  all.  Although  quite  a  young  man,  he  had 
shown  pluck  and  courage,  and  a  complete  mastery  of  his 
art. 

More  bugles,  and  in  galloped  a  team  of  mules.  The 
dead  bull  was  tied  by  the  hind  legs,  and  dragged  out.  His 
life  had  ended  in  noble  combat,  a  fine  example  of  the 
courage  of  his  race. 

I  admired  it  all.  For  the  time  I  forgot  the  unfortunate 
horses,  and  felt  that  a  bull-fight  was  neither  cruel  nor  brutal, 
though,  alas !  with  those  wretched  horses  left  in  the  pro- 
gramme   it  was  unworthy  of  mankind. 

Hardly  was  the  ring  cleared  before  the  second  bull 
rushed  in,  and  the  programme  was  repeated.  In  the 
excitement  of  the  moment,  and  in  spite  of  the  distance,  I 
struggled  to  take  some  photographs  of  the  scenes  taking 
place  below.  This  bull,  as  mentioned  earlier  in  the 
chapter,  jumped  the  barrier  on  three  different  occasions, 
and  although  not  such  a  fine-looking  animal  as  the  first, 
he  was  wild  and  excitable. 

Alas  !  That  matador  was  a  fool.  Some  say  the  bull 
charged  badly  and  danced  around,  but  there  can  be  no 
doubt  that  the  matador  missed  his  first  thrust,  and  injured 
the  animal  without  killing  him.  Again  he  missed,  and 
even  a  third  time.  It  was  a  sickening  sight,  and  I  left  the 
box,  only  to  hear  the  groans  and  hisses  of  the  populace, 
which  continued  until  the  matador  eventually  landed  his 
quarry.  This  performance  seemed  positively  vile — I  would 
not  risk  the  chance  of  repetition,  and  left  the  building 
feeling  sick  at  heart  at  the  sight  of  such  butchery,  for 
butchery  it  undoubtedly  was,  and  is,  whenever  the  animal 
is  not  killed  at  the  first  thrust.  Fair  combat  and  speedy 
death  alone  are  sport. 

Butchery — I  use  the  term  advisedly — is  appalling,  and 
surely  public  opinion  ought  to  hound  a  bad  matador  from 
the  ring  after  such  an  exhibition  of  incompetency.      A  bull- 


IS  A    BULL-FIGHT  CRUEL?  187 

fight  is  a  fine  trial  of  skill  and  courage  ;  I  had  seen  enough 
to  feel  enthusiastic  with  regard  to  the  dexterity  and  valour 
of  man,  and  the  strength  and  courage  of  the  bull  ;  therefore, 
to  my  mind,  a  bull-fight  is  not  cruel  so  long  as  the 
opponents  meet  in  equal  combat.  The  poor,  decrepit, 
murdered  horses  must,  however,  be  omitted,  and  it  is 
indispensable  that  the  matadors  know  and  understand  their 
business,  else  the  spectacle  becomes  disgusting. 

The  President  and  Madame  Diaz  do  not  approve  of  bull- 
fights ;  the  highest  people  in  the  land  seldom  go  to  them  ; 
but  so  popular  are  they  with  the  lower  classes  that  every 
attempt  to  stop  them  has  proved  futile,  and  judging  by 
the  enthusiasm  I  witnessed  in  the  Plaza  de  Toros,  they 
are  likely  to  continue. 

When  a  charity  bull-fight  is  given,  as  sometimes  happens, 
for  of  course  it  is  an  enormously  profitable  entertainment, 
certain  young  ladies  in  high  society  are  chosen  as  "  Queens 
of  the  Rino-."  The  committee  ask  three  or  four  of  the 
prettiest  and  most  charming  maidens  of  the  town  to  grace 
the  fight  with  their  presence.  They  are  given  a  box  next 
to  that  of  the  President,  which  is  gaily  decorated  with 
flowers  for  the  occasion  ;  bouquets  are  placed  in  it  for  the 
fair  occupants,  each  of  whom  is  given  a  badge  of  honour 
denoting  that  she  is  Queen  of  the  Ring. 

After  the  death  of  each  bull,  the  matador  and  chief 
performers  go  up  to  the  box  to  receive  the  ladies'  con- 
gratulations, and  generally  some  decoration  or  badge  is 
pinned  upon  their  breasts  by  one  of  the  Queens. 

Bull  and  cock-fights  are  the  sport  of  Mexico,  just  as  horse- 
racing  and  cricket  are  pastimes  in  Britain,  or  trotting  in 
America  ;  but  sport  is  one  thing,  cruelty  to  animals  another. 

The  following,  which  appeared  in  a  local  paper  one  day 
during  my  visit  to  Mexico,  gives  a  very  good  idea  of  the 
spirit  of  the  age,  and  how  youth  is  encouraged. 


iSS  MEXICO  AS   I  SA  IV  IT. 

"The  exhibition  given  by  the  juvenile  bull-fighters  in  Juarez  last  Sunday  (Jan.  1901), 
was  by  far  the  best  seen  there  for  a  long  time.  The  bulls  were  excellent.  The 
fifteen-year-old  boy  who  officiated  as  matador,  killed  two  bulls,  winning  the  highest 
applause  by  his  clever  work.  When  the  fourth  bull  was  turned  in,  the  youngest  of  the 
troupe,  who  is  but  thirteen,  besought  permission  of  the  judges  to  kill  him,  and  was 
allowed  to  do  so.  The  bull  was  no  mean  fighter,  but  the  boy  did  some  fine  work,  and 
when  he  drove  the  sword  in  up  to  the  hilt,  the  applause  was  deafening,  and  the  older  bull- 
fighter, who  acts  as  trainer,  picked  him  up  in  his  arms,  and  hugged  him  in  his  enthusiasm." 

These  boys  are  now  heroes !  The  lad  of  thirteen  was 
publicly  embraced  by  an  old  and  experienced  bull-fighter  ! 
He  was  the  envy  of  his  companions,  the  admired  of 
thousands.  When  babies  are  allowed  to  witness  bull- 
fights, and  mere  children  take  part  in  them,  it  is  no  wonder 
that  the  entertainment  becomes  part  and  parcel  of  their 
lives,  therefore  how  is  the  cruel  element  ever  to  be  stamped 
out  ? 


1 89 


CHAPTER  XII. 

CHRISTiMAS    CUSTOMS    AND    MADAME    DIAz'    POSADA. 

Christmas  festivities  in  Mexico  begin  nine  days  before  the 
twenty-fifth  of  December,  and  end  on  New  Year's  Day. 
The  customs  of  posadas  and  piiiatas  are  peculiar  to  the 
country,  and  consequently  of  great  interest, 

A  few  days  before  Christmas  the  Governor  of  the 
Federal  district  called  and  said  : 

"  Madame  Diaz  wishes  me  to  invite  you  to  her  posada, 
that  is  if  you  think  you  will  not  feel  lonely  among  so  many 
Mexicans.      She  will  be  glad  to  welcome  you." 

I  almost  jumped  for  joy.  A  posada  was  just  the  thing 
I  wanted  to  see,  and  above  all  a  posada  given  by  the  Presi- 
dent of  Mexico.  I  felt  highly  delighted  at  the  honour, 
for  these  posadas  are  family  parties,  and  as  a  rule  no  out- 
siders— not  even  Foreign  Ministers — are  invited. 

The  word  in  Spanish  means  "abiding-place,"  or  "  inn  "  ; 
and  while  the  ceremony  is  semi-religious,  the  subsequent 
developments  are  extremely  jovial.  These  posadas  last 
from  December  i6th  to  the  24th,  on  which  latter  date 
Christmas  proper  is  kept. 

The  wealthiest  folk  of    Mexico,  as  well  as   the  poorest 
invariably  hold  a  posada.      Each  year  one  house  of  a  family 
circle  is  chosen  for  the   celebrations,  and  at  that   house  for 
nine  consecutive  nights  high    festival    is  held.      The  first 
day  one  lady    invites  her  friends,    gives  the  presents,   and 


190  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

plays  the  role  of  hostess,  and  the  next  evening  another  takes 
her  place.  Sometimes  two  or  three  combine  forces,  but 
in  any  case,  for  nine  consecutive  nights  festivities  continue. 

As  regards  the  origin  of  the  custom.  We  all  know 
"because  there  was  no  room  for  them  in  the  inn,"  Mary 
and  Joseph  who  journeyed  for  nine  days,  were  obliged  to 
take  shelter  in  a  stable,  where  the  infant  Christ  was  born. 
Therefore  it  is  that  the  nine  days'  posada  characteristically 
begins  with  the  commencement  of  the  journey  from 
Nazareth  to  Bethlehem,  whither  they  went  in  obedience 
to  an  order  from  the  Roman  Emperor  that  "all  the  world 
should  be  taxed."  Needless  to  say,  every  night  they  had  to 
find  shelter  at  some  inn,  and  it  is  in  remembrance  of  that 
nightly  halt  that  these  strange  customs  are  kept  up. 

On  the  evening  chosen  for  the  religious  service,  servants 
and  friends  attend,  more  soberly  attired  than  on  other 
occasions.  In  one  of  the  rooms  an  altar,  decorated  with 
blue  and  white  draperies,  intermingled  with  the  feathery 
grey  Chapultepec  moss,  is  erected.  Below  in  the  centre  is 
a  model  of  a  stable,  showing  the  child  Christ,  with  various 
small  statues  grouped  around. 

Pictures  of  the  Virgin  hang  over  the  temporary  altar,  on 
which  candles  are  burning,  while  a  dense  cloud  of  incense 
pervades  the  chamber. 

In  the  better  houses  the  Holy  Family  is  often  exquisitely 
fashioned  in  ivory  or  plaster,  is  in  fact  a  work  of  art  which 
can  be  used  for  years  ;  but  as  every  house  has  some  form 
of  Holy  Family,  even  the  very  poorest  investing  their  few 
centavos  to  acquire  the  figures,  they  are  often  made  after 
the  rudest  design. 

Once  the  party  is  assembled,  and  prayer  ended,  the 
guests  cross  themselves  before  these  images,  and  kneel 
about  the  room  in  couples,  holding  lighted  candles  in  their 
hands.  Children  and  servants  always  take  part  in  these 
ceremonials,   and    after    the  Mass    has    been    read    by   the 


CHRISTMAS    CUSTOMS.  191 

family  priest  a  procession  is  formed.  Every  man,  woman 
and  child  in  the  establishment,  candle  in  hand,  walks  two 
and  two  through  the  house  from  basement  to  attic.  The 
figures  of  Mary  and  Joseph  are  borne  solemnly  in  front, 
while  the  worshippers  intone  the  Litany  of  Loretto. 

The  dresses  of  the  Holy  Couple  are  sometimes  strange. 
I  have  seen  many  made  of  bright  yellow,  blue  or  red  satin, 
trimmed  with  tinselled  borderinofs  and  common  lace,  the  aneel 
who  hovers  overhead  being  represented  in  wax  of  florid 
colouring.  In  spite  of  this,  however,  the  service  is  distinctly 
religious  and  enthusiastic.  On  wanders  the  procession, 
through  the  corridors  and  up  and  down  the  stairs,  revisiting 
the  same  rooms,  and  pausing  now  and  again  to  knock  at 
some  door  and  beg  admittance.  When  the  Litany  is 
finished,  two  or  three  of  the  party  enter  a  room  and  shut 
the  door.  Outside  remain  the  figures  of  the  Virgin  and 
Joseph,  while  the  rest  of  the  procession  sing  the  following 
chant,  supposed  to, represent  the  plea  of  Joseph  for  admis- 
sion for  his  wife  : 

"In  Heaven's  Name  I  beg  for  shelter, 
My  wife  to-night  can  go  no  further." 

To  which  comes  the  reply  : 

"  No   Inn  is  this,  begone  from  hence, 
Ve  may  be  thieves,  I  trust  ye  not." 

The  tune  is  one  of  immemorial  antiquity. 

After  this  the  party  is  guided  by  the  hostess  to  some  spot 
chosen  for  the  conclusion  of  the  ceremony.  Sometimes  the 
roof,  in  which  case  the  worshippers  stumble  up  the  stairs, 
where,  opening  a  door,  they  have  to  carefully  guard  their 
candles  from  being  extinguished  by  the  night  air.  On  the 
flat  roof  a  kind  of  stable  has  already  been  arranged,  in  which, 
with  the  utmost  reverence,  the  figures  of  Mary  and  Joseph 
are  placed.  At  that  moment  the  church  bells  ring  out  the 
hour    of    midnight,   and   the    posada    is    ended,    the    stars 


192  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

shining    as    brightly    in    the    heavens   as   did    that   famous 
orb,  over  nineteen  hundred  years  ago,  on  Bethlehem. 

Until  quite  lately,  this  performance  at  Christmas-time 
was  of  nightly  occurrence  ;  it  then  took  place  early  in  the 
evening,  and  was  followed  by  a  dance  and  romp  for  the 
children.  The  Church,  thinking  it  inadvisable  to  join  a 
religious  ceremony  with  frivolities,  ordered  the  processional 
posada  should  take  place  only  on  one  evening  of  the  nine. 

Christmas  is  a  great  event  in  Mexico.  These  Jiesta- 
loving  people  thoroughly  enjoy  their  posadas  and  piiiatas, 
quaint,  picturesque  customs  entirely  peculiar  to  the  land. 
By  the  middle  of  December  the  markets  and  squares  were 
crowded  with  booths,  for  the  sale  of  Christmas  dainties. 
That  is  a  universal  custom  throughout  the  length  and 
breadth  of  Mexico.  The  plazas  and  zocalos  are  filled  with 
stands  groaning  beneath  the  weight  of  presents,  decorations 
for  altars,  or  groups  for  creches.  In  Mexico  City  alone 
there  were  hundreds  of  these  stalls  containing  every  con- 
ceivable kind  of  candy  and  sugared  fruit,  together  with 
pottery,  while  more  particularly  in  connection  with  Christmas 
appeared  little  figures  representing  sacred  persons,  the  Three 
Kings — whose  fete  day  is  the  sixth  of  January,  or  Twelfth- 
night — being  a  favourite  group.  These  queer  figures,  usually 
four  or  five  inches  high,  are  supposed  to  represent  three 
races,  a  Negro,  a  Caucasian,  and  a  Mongolian. 

Of  course,  the  everlasting  peanuts  were  there,  Chinese 
lanterns,  wooden  toys,  hideous  masks,  woolly  monkeys  and 
lambs.  Among  other  things  were  a  few  Naguales.  These 
weird  things  are  used  to  frighten  children  and  make  them 
good.  A  Nagual  is  a  horribly  ugly  production  ;  a  woolly 
body  on  four  primitive  little  legs  is  given  a  human  but 
grotesque  face.  They  are  supposed  to  have  magic  power 
like  the  devil.  Of  course  all  those  sold  at  the  fairs  are  toys 
for  children,  but  there  are  many  grown-up  persons  who 
believe  that  real  Naguales,  the  size  of  men,  exist,   and  that 


CHRISTMAS   CUSTOMS.  193 

they  can  transform  themselves  and  become  invisible.  Pro- 
bably this  idea  of  magicians  is  a  remnant  of  sorcery  not  yet 
extinct  in  Mexico. 

Then  there  were  reed  baskets  woven  by  the  Indians, 
brown  glazed  ware — representing  man,  fish,  beast  or  fowl 
— such  as  is  made  at  Guadalupe  ;  charming  dark-green 
glazed  pottery  from  Oaxaca,  lustres  from  San  Felipe,  curious 
toys  woven  from  horse-hair,  drawn-thread  work  from  Aguas 
Calientes,  beautiful  feather  picture-work  for  which  the 
Indians  are  noted,  even  to-day,  crypts  for  the  posadas,  of 
wondrous  make  and  ingenuity,  confetti,  tropical  fruits,  flags, 
draperies,  paper  decorations,  all  these  groaned  on  the  shelves 
of  the  booths. 

It  is  a  veritable  paradise  for  children,  and  so  interesting 
did  I  find  the  commodities  on  sale  at  that  Christmas  fair, 
and  the  strange  motley  of  aristocratic  Spaniards  and 
Mexican  Indians,  that  I  spent  several  evenings  wandering 
among  the  stalls.  At  one  of  the  counters  I  bought  several 
bits  of  pottery,  including  the  Three  Kings — all  told  they 
only  cost  about  a  dollar — but  not  exactly  knowing  how  to 
carry  them  home,  for  paper  was  not  procurable,  I  spread 
out  a  handkerchief,  intending  to  convey  them  away  in  that 
manner.  The  saleswoman,  however,  would  not  hear  of  it. 
She  thought  I  should  break  the  precious  things,  and  insisted 
on  giving  me  a  beautiful  reed  basket,  into  which  she  packed 
the  various  bits  of  pottery,  and  for  which  she  absolutely 
refused  any  remuneration. 

In  the  crowd  one  was  continually  running  up  against 
piiiatas.  Now  these  are  something  particularly  weird  and 
peculiar.  In  many  European  countries  we  have  a 
Christmas  tree,  but  in  Mexico  the  pinata  takes  its  place. 
One  passes  an  Indian  with  a  five  or  six  feet  pole  swung 
across  his  shoulder,  or  a  bamboo  reed,  from  which  are 
hanging  paper  dolls.  These  strange  figures  are  usually 
about  four  feet  high  ;  they  represent  a  clown  with  different 


194  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

coloured  arms  and  leQ-s,  a  ballet-o'irl,  nio-o-er,  fashionable  man 
or  woman,  a  ship  in  full  sail,  or  sometimes  a  grotesque 
animal.  They  are  all  decidedly  corpulent  about  the  centre 
of  the  body  ;  this  is  because  they  are  full  of  sweets  and 
treasures.  To  keep  the  figure  together,  the  form  is  roughly 
cut  out  in  cardboard,  or  lio-ht  sticks  are  bound  so  as  to 
make  the  body,  arms  and  legs.  The  centre  is  composed  of 
an  olla  or  casueia,  literally  meaning  bowl  or  vase.  The  olla 
is  crammed  full  of  sweets,  rattles,  whistles  and  crackers,  and 
forms  the  centre  of  the  grotesque  figure.  It  is  hung  by 
strings  which  come  out  at  the  head.  Of  course  the  piiiatas 
can  be  made  by  the  Indians  for  a  few  pence,  and  one  at  that 
price  is  to  be  found  in  every  hut.  Among  the  rich,  however, 
hundreds  of  dollars  may  be  contained  in  the  pinatas,  which 
are  broken  during  the  Christmas  festivities.  There  must 
have  been  thousands  of  pinatas,  with  their  gaudy  colours 
and  streams  of  paper  or  tinsel,  sold  during  those 
days  before  Christmas  in  the  public  squares  of  Mexico ; 
men  and  women  were  hawking  them  through  the  streets 
continually.  People  were  bargaining  for  their  purchase  at 
every  corner,  and  it  was  rather  amusing  to  see  some  sedate 
old  papa  hastening  home  with  a  tissue  paper  ballet-girl 
of  gorgeous  hues  and  tinselled  decorations  under  his 
arm.  Indeed,  even  a  grand  victoria  drew  up  on  one 
occasion,  and  the  lady  inside,  having  taken  a  particular 
fancy  to  a  Mephistophelian  doll,  bought  the  same,  placed 
it  beside  her  on  the  seat,  and  proceeded  to  drive  it 
solemnly   home. 

For  a  fortnio^ht  excitement  was  in  the  air,  Christmas  on 
every  tongue,  the  entire  population  buying  presents  and 
hiding  them  away  for  the  great  day,  for  the  present-giving 
craze  exceeds  anything  I  have  ever  known.  It  extends 
outside  the  family  to  friends,  and  even  acquaintances. 

The  day  of  Madame  Diaz'  posada  duly  arrived,  and,  all 
excitement  for   such  a  novel    party,    I    waited    like  a   little 


CHRISTMAS   CUSTOMS.  195 

girl   "to  be  fetched."      Below  is  a  list  of  some  of  the  enter- 
tainers on  the  nine  consecutive  nio-hts  : 

o 

Seiior  Presidente  Don  Poifirio  Diaz,  Capitan  Don  Porfirio  Diaz,  Senor  Jose  Ives 
Lini^antour  (Financial  Secretary),  General  Reyes  (War  Secretary),  Senor  Gonzalez 
Cosie  (Home  Secretary),  Senor  Jose  Maria  Gamboa  (Under  Secretary,  Foreign  Office), 
Senor  Guillermo  de  Landa  y  Escandon  (Governor  of  Federal  District  and  Mayor), 
Senor  Cervantes  de  Riba,  Senor  de  Teresa  Miranda  (Minister  in  \'ienna),  Seiior  Ignacio 
Mariscal  (Foreign  Secretary),  Senor  Julio  Limantour  (Deputy),  Seiior  Tomas  Moran 
(Deputy),  Senor  Alonso  Mariscal  (Deputy),  Seiior  Genaro  Raigosa  (Senator),  Seiior  Jose 
W.  de  Landa  y  Escandon  (Deputy),  Senor  Don  Sebastian  Camacho  (Senator),  Senor 
Benito  Gomez  Farias  (Senator),  Seiior  Carlos  Rivas  (Senator),  Seiior  Pablo  Martinez  del 
Rio  (Deputy),  Senor  Cervantes,  Seiior  Riva  y  Echeverria  (Deputy),  Seiior  Joaquin 
Casasus,  Seiior  Pablo  Macedo,  Seiior  Joaquin  Redo  (Senator),  Seiior  Algara  (Deputy), 
Seiiora  T.  de  Rincon  Gallardo,  Seiior  Escheverria,  and  their  wives. 

A  little  before  eight  o'clock  we  drove  up  to  the  stately 
mansion  of  Senor  and  Senora  Cervantes  de  Riba  of 
Buenavista.  It  was  a  typical  Mexican  home.  Inside  was 
a  large  patio,  probably  the  largest  in  Mexico,  full  of  flowers 
and  palms,  the  particular  joy  of  Senora  Riba.  The  stone 
floor  had  been  carpeted,  and  small  tables,  arranged  for 
supper,  stood  among  the  palms,  overhung  by  Chinese  lan- 
terns and  fairy  lights.  The  sky  was  shut  out  by  an  artificial 
ceiling  of  canvas,  a  necessary  precaution  during  that  wintry 
December,  when  the  temperature  for  a  whole  month  was 
about  47  degs.  F.,  or  exactly  the  same  as  in  London,  where 
huo^e  fires  were  burnino-  in  the  o-rates.  In  Mexico,  however, 
there  are  no  fires  or  heating  contrivances  whatever,  yet  the 
rooms  are  enormous,  and  there  are  great  open  patios  every- 
where. I  have  been  in  Arctic  reo-ions,  travelled  throupfh 
Norway  with  the  thermometer  at  47  degrees  below  freezing 
point,  yet  I  never  felt  so  cold  as  in  the  raw  dampness  of 
Mexico  City,  situated  on  the  verge  of  the  Tropics. 

This  was  only  in  December  however ;  after  that  ex- 
perience glorious  bright  sunny  clays  were  universal. 

Fortunately  the  night  was  fine,  and  all  went  merry  as  a 
marriage  bell.  As  it  was  the  posada  of  the  President  of 
the   Mexican   Republic  and  his  charming  wife,  several  extra 

T  1  * 


196  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

features  had    been  added    to  the    evening's  entertainment 
An    order    had    been     issued    that    every    dancing    maiden 
should  come  in  fancy  dress  made  of  paper  ! 

It  sounds  impossible  ;  yet  so  deft  are  Mexican  fingers 
that  the  result  was  one  of  the  prettiest  balls  I  have  ever 
seen.  Empire  and  Kate  Greenaway  styles  were  favourites, 
and  the  ingenuity  with  which  costumes  and  poke  bonnets 
were  executed  was  remarkable.  There  were  vivandieres  and 
follies  ;  babies,  Red  Riding  Hoods  and  Charlotte  Cordays  ; 
but  one  and  all  were  garbed  in  paper,  just  simple  crinkled 
lamp-shade  paper,  sometimes  of  plain  colours,  sometimes 
ornamented  with  floral  designs  ;  yes,  impossible  as  it  may 
sound,  these  dainty  and  artistic  frocks  were  fashioned  merely 
of  paper.  Most  of  the  girls  had  made  their  own  dresses, 
which  did  the  greatest  credit  to  the  young  ladies,  whose 
pretty  faces  were  by  no  means  marred  by  their  curious- 
textured  gowns. 

Most  of  the  dancing  men  were  attired  in  red  dress- 
coats,  just  like  an  English  hunt  evening  dress,  only  the 
Mexicans  wore  black  knee  breeches  and  silk  stockings,  and 
had  powdered  their  hair  white. 

Madame  Diaz  received  graciously.  Although  the  Presi- 
dent and  his  wife  hold  such  an  honoured  position,  they  are 
not  treated  like  royalty.  No  one  curtseys  to  them,  all  shake 
hands,  yet  everyone  rises  when  they  enter  or  leave  a  room, 
though  Madame  Diaz  invariably  bids  them  remain  seated. 

Valses  and  quadrilles  were  in  the  programme  ;  besides 
these  a  delightful  Spanish  dance  was  given  by  a  couple  of 
handsome  young  people  dressed  as  a  matador  and  cigarette- 
maker,  with  tambourine  and  mantilla. 

Another  very  favourite  movement  is  the  Danza,  which 
is  known  from  Spain  to  South  America,  from  Manila  to 
Mexico  City.  It  is  a  kind  of  slow  Washington  Post,  only 
that  four  dance  together,  taking  hands  as  in  the  ladies'  chain 
in  the  Quadrille,  and  every  now  and  then  take  a  few  turns 


CHRISTMAS   CUSTOMS.  i97 

with  their  own  partners.  It  is  slow,  but  extremely  graceful, 
and  more  than  half  the  dances  on  a  programme  are  these 
stately  examples  of  the  terpsichorean  art. 

During  the  course  of  the  evening  the  distribution  of 
presents  began — a  sad  tax  on  the  hostess  who  gives  the 
posada,  for  everyone  attending  bears  away  a  memento  ! 

Madame  Diaz'  presents  were  beautiful.  Everything  was 
of  silver — match-boxes,  or  cigar-cutters,  for  the  men,  flower- 
vases,  bonbonnieres,  letter-weights,  gum-bottles,  or  stamp- 
boxes  for  the  women.  A  couple  of  men-servants  in  Presi- 
dential livery  carried  trays  laden  with  gifts,  which  Madame 
Diaz  distributed  to  each  of  her  hundred  and  fifty  guests  as  a 
souvenir  of  her  ball.  To  me  she  gave  a  silver  bonbonniere, 
saying,  in  faultless  English  : 

"With  all  kindly  wishes,  and  hopes  that  you  will  not 
forget  us  in  England."  It  took  the  greatest  lady  in  the 
land,  who  has  acquired  the  manners  of  a  queen,  quite  a 
long  time  to  walk  round  the  spacious  rooms,  and  she  did  so 
while  dancing  was  going  on,  not  to  interfere  with  the 
pleasure  of  the  younger  folk.  I  say  "younger"  advisedly, 
for  a  married  woman  in  Mexico,  be  she  only  seventeen,  as 
is  often  the  case,  rarely  dances.  In  fact,  the  life  of  a 
Mexican  woman  is  not  a  jovial  one  ;  she  marries  straight 
from  the  convent  or  school,  and  her  home  is  her  horizon. 
Very  ideal  no  doubt,  but  rather  dull. 

About  ten  o'clock  we  were  called  to  view  the  fireworks. 
At  the  back  of  the  house  is  a  balcony  from  which,  muffled 
in  cloaks,  we  witnessed  the  display.  Fire  balloons,  rockets, 
Catherine  wheels,  all  went  off  in  grand  fashion,  and  soared 
away  into  those  starry  deep  black  heavens. 

Now  arrived  the  moment  for  breaking  the  pifiata.  Hang- 
ing in  the  garden  below  were  three — a  ballet-dancer,  a  ship, 
and  a  clown — each  full  of  sweets,  whistles,  jumping  frogs, 
confetti,  wonderful  puzzles,  crackers,  or  such-like  toys.  The 
youngest  little  girl  present  was  blindfolded,   given  a  stick. 


198  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

and  told  to  go  and  strike  a  piiiata  ;  after  several  fruitless 
attempts,  amid  much  laughter,  she  succeeded  in  hitting  the 
hanging  treasure,  when  down  came  the  shower,  and  everyone 
scrambled  on  hands  and  knees  for  the  contents.  Three  were 
broken  in  succession  amid  shrieks  of  joy  and  laughter,  in 
which  old  and  young  joined  heartily. 

At  about  11.30  supper  was  served.  All  the  younger 
folk  tripped  off  to  the  little  tables  in  the  hall  downstairs, 
where  the  bright  dresses  and  scarlet  coats  looked  lovely 
among  the  green  palms  and  red  shaded  candles.  Never  have 
I  seen  a  prettier  effect  than  that  splendid  patio,  with  its  red 
carpet  and  marble  stairs,  the  fancy  dresses,  and  the  dainty 
tables  arranged  so  cunningly  among  sheltering  foliage. 

About  thirty  guests  were  invited  to  the  private  dining- 
room  of  the  President  and  Madame  Diaz  on  the  first  floor, 
where  the  drawino-rooms  and  best  bedrooms  all  led  out  of 
one  another.  I  was  fortunate  enough  to  be  among  the 
honoured  few,  and  found  a  most  delightful  companion  in 
the  famous  Minister  of  Finance,  Senor  Jose  Limantour 
who,  being  of  French  extraction,  had  been  educated  in  that 
country,  and  conversation  was  consequently  an  easy  matter. 
The  Marquis  de  Corvera  (Spanish  Minister),  also  proved 
interesting,  and  I  thoroughly  enjoyed  my  Christmas  supper- 
party  !  Roses  decorated  the  table,  grown  out  of  doors, 
despite  the  cold  weather  ;  a  problem  I  never  succeeded  in 
solving,  for  though  in  Britain  roses  cannot  grow  out  of  doors 
in  a  temperature  of  47  deg.  F.,  yet  in  Mexico  they  flourish 
and  are  beautiful. 

Hot  soup  was  followed  by  cold  meats,  chicken,  salad, 
creams  and  strawberries — also  grown  out  of  doors,  but  not 
at  such  an  elevation  as  the  City,  for  they  came  from  the 
lower  lands,  where  they  grow  all  the  year  round. 

After  supper  the  Presidential  party  left.  All  rose,  and 
with  a  pretty  "good-bye,"  and  thanks  for  drinking  her 
health,  Madame  Diaz  disappeared,    followed    by    the    owner 


CHRISTMAS   CUSTOMS.  i99 

of  the  house  and  the  Ministers,  who  escorted  the  President 
and  herself  to  their  carriage.  We  proceeded  to  eat  ices,  at 
least  those  of  us  who  did  not  find  them  too  cold. 

It  was  half-past  one  before  we  left,  feeling  we  had 
enjoyed  a  most  delightful  evening,  thoroughly  appreciating 
this  peep  into  the  Christmas  party  of  the  highest  in  the 
land.  It  was  truly  a  family  party  !  Everyone  was  related 
to  everyone  else,  for  these  good  old  Spanish  families  have 
numerous  children  who  marry  and  intermarry  until  every- 
body is  a  sister  or  brother-in-law,  a  cousin,  a  nephew  or  a 
niece !  As  if  this  endless  relationship  were  not  enough, 
others  are  added.  For  instance,  God-parents  are  very  im- 
portant people,  almost  as  important  as  relations  ;  the  god- 
father is  styled  Padrino,  the  god-mother  JMadrina,  and  they 
are  Compadres  to  the  child's  parents.  Now  these  compadres 
become  spiritually  related  to  the  child's  parents,  wedded,  sc 
to  speak,  by  the  bonds  of  the  Church,  and  supposing  that 
Mrs.  A.'s  husband  dies,  and  Mr.  S. — who  is  the  dearest 
friend  of  the  family,  and  the  Padrino  of  her  child — falls  in 
love  with  Mrs.  A.  ;  why,  he  must  not  marry  her,  for  the 
Church  forbids  compadres  to  marry.  But  in  the  same  way 
that  the  Roman  Catholic  Church  forbids  divorce,  dispensa- 
tions are  not  entirely  unknown  ! 

God-parents  look  upon  their  office  as  a  sacred  one  ;  they 
take  the  spiritual  life  of  the  child  in  their  hands,  and  if  the 
parents  die,  often  fill  their  place  towards  the  god-child. 

An  infant  is  christened  a  few  days  after  its  birth,  and 
among  the  common  people  the  father  and  his  compadres 
give  a  dance  in  honour  of  the  event.  The  mother  is  barely 
out  of  danger,  but  unless  she  is  seriously  ill,  her  husband 
gives  his  ball  and  makes  merry.  Then  a  printed  notice 
called  Bollo,   is  sent  to  friends,  to  notify  that  A. B.C.   was 

baptised  on  such  a  day,  and  the  god-parents  were  . 

At  the  top  of  the  card  is  a  coin,  a  real  coin  ;  to  near  relations 
a  small  gold  dollar  is  affixed,  to  mere  friends  a  tiny  silver 


200  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

piece,  emblematic  of  comfort  and  good  fare  for  the  new-born 
babe.  Even  to-day  a  twenty-dollar  gold  coin  is  given  by  the 
compadres  to  the  doctor,  midwife,  father,  mother  and  priest. 

It  must  be  terribly  expensive  to  be  a  compadre,  for  the 
god-parents  give  a  child,  besides  the  ordinary  cup  and  bowl, 
all  its  smart  clothes  for  the  christening !  Robe,  cloak,  etc. — 
made  of  the  most  expensive  lace  and  embroidery  among  rich 
folk  ;  and  a  small  charm  or  mascot  is  given  to  the  baby, 
and  hung  round  its  neck  for  luck. 

Then,  again,  as  soon  as  the  populace  become  aware  a 
wealthy  christening  is  in  progress,  they  all  flock  to  the 
church  door,  because  the  compadres  are  expected  to 
distribute  "  bolla,"  or  money  to  the  indigent.  Handfuls  of 
coins  are  thrown  and  scrambled  for  by  the  crowd.  Poor 
compadres  !  Their  purses  must  be  considerably  lighter  at 
the  end  of  the  day's  festivities  ! 

When  that  child  is  confirmed,  new  compadres  are  often 
chosen,  or  again,  when  the  Christmas  altar  is  packed  up 
and  put  away,  the  youth  and  maid  chosen  to  fill  the  sacred 
and  solemn  office,  become  compadres  for  the  occasion. 
Again,  at  a  party  lots  may  be  drawn,  and  the  man  to  whose 
care  a  girl  chances,  finds  himself  her  compadre  for  the  even- 
ing, and  is  bound  to  look  after  her  every  want.  There  is  no 
end  to  the  compadre  business,  and  to  a  stranger  it  appears  as 
though  everyone  must  be  a  relation  or  compadre  of  somebody 
else,  so  small  and  select  is  the  society  of  Mexico  City. 

Up  to  the  time  of  Cortes  it  was  quite  common  for 
parents  to  sacrifice  their  newly-born  babes  ;  but  these  days 
have  long  gone  by,  and  the  compadres  look  after  them 
if  the  parents  in  any  way  fail  ;  and  to-day,  especially 
among  the  poor  Indians,  the  parents  try  to  beg,  borrow  or 
steal  a  piece  of  coral  to  put  on  the  infant  to  protect  it 
from  harm.      They  are  most  superstitious  ! 

As  we  drove  home  in  the  still  hours  of  the  night,  after 
that  wonderful  posada,  we  passed  a  solitary  beggar,  a  poor 


CHRISTMAS   CUSTOMS.  201 

wretch  lying  huddled  up  on  one  of  those  wide  doorsteps. 
Beggars  are  to  a  certain  extent  licensed  in  Mexico,  that  is 
to  say,  if  a  person  be  an  invalid  or  cripple,  and  have  no 
way  of  earning  money,  he  is  given  permission  to  beg.  This 
is  not,  however,  allowed  in  the  chief  streets,  and  generally 
the  outside  of  some  church  door  is  allotted  to  the  candidate. 

Should  the  applicants  be  merely  destitute,  they  are  sent 
to  an  asylum  and  obliged  to  perform  a  small  amount  of 
work.  Children  under  fifteen  are  provided  with  permission 
for  the  sale  of  papers,  otherwise  if  they  attempt  to  dispose  of 
such  they  are  run  in  and  sent  off  to  schools  of  correction. 

I  was  happy  and  tired  that  night  when  I  drove  home, 
and  among  other  new  experiences,  this  "  elderly  scribe  "  had 
been  guilty  of  her  first  valse  on  Mexican  soil.  Oh  dear  ! 
what  a  breathless  entertainment  it  proved  ! 

Mexico  City  is  nearly  8,000  feet  above  sea-level.  It 
is  not  everyone  who  can  stand  the  altitude,  and  only  those 
who  settle  there  while  young  ever  get  accustomed  to  it. 
The  first  time  I  ran  upstairs  it  was  a  horrible  shock.  Old 
age  seemed  suddenly  to  have  overtaken  me.  Was  the 
editor  of  M.A.P.  right  ? 

One  is  apt  to  forget  that  at  such  a  tremendous  altitude — 
for  there  is  no  large  town  in  Europe  situated  so  high — 
the  heart  has  to  do  30%  more  work  than  is  required  of  it 
lower  down,  because  the  blood  takes  up  less  oxygen  as  it 
passes  through  the  lungs,  and  causes  breathlessness.  The 
heart,  which  in  every-day  circumstances  jogs  along  quietly 
and  does  its  best,  rebels  when  required  to  run  or  dance,  and 
the  result  is  palpitation  !  Another  thing  I  noticed  in  connec- 
tion with  these  altitudes,  namely,  that  both  in  ascending  and 
descending  10,000  feet  in  the  train,  I  experienced  a  curious 
feeling  of  nausea  and  buzzing  in  the  head.  It  was  only 
temporary,  but  such  different  altitudes,  covered  in  a  few 
hours,  affect  even  the  strongest. 


202 


CHAPTER    XIII 


ODDS    AND    ENDS. 


"  Will  you  take  me  to  a  real  Mexican  Restaurant?"  I 
asked  Mr.  O' Brian,  the  stepson  of  Mr.  Justice  Wurtele,  of 
Montreal.  "  Nothing  grand,  just  the  common  sort  of  eating- 
house,  where  the  real  native  takes  his  meal  ?  " 

"Certainly  ;  you  won't  like  it,  but  you  shall  go,  of 
course,"  he  replied.  Accordingly,  off  we  started  about 
seven  o'clock  one  evening  to  the  representative  meal.  I 
wore  an  old  black  dress,  left  my  watch  and  brooches  at 
home,  and  felt  ready  for  a  peep  into  native  life. 

Arrived  at  the  Meson  de  las  Ratas  (House  of  the  Rats,  a 
well-known  haunt  of  pickpockets),  my  companion  opened 
the  door. 

"  If  it  is  ^00  primitive  just  tell  me,"  he  said,  "  and  we  will 
go  elsewhere." 

My  heart  failed  me  for  a  moment.  The  room,  and  a 
couple  of  rooms  beyond,  were  full  of  men.  They  wore 
large  felt  or  straw  hats  ;  many  were  attired  in  cotton  shirts, 
others  had  red  blankets  thrown  around  them.  They  were 
of  the  people — there  was  no  doubt  about  that — and  the 
only  two  women  present  had  shawls  over  their  heads. 

"  This  will  do,  it  is  just  the  thing,  and  now  we  must 
have  real  Mexican  dishes,"  I  replied. 

Accordingly  we  sat  down  at  a  small  table.  Suddenly,  I 
remembered  I   had  not  taken  off  my  rings,  and   feeling  the 


Drnaincnlalions  from  Aztec  Wall  of  .Ser]5ents. 


Stone  scrpciu'.s  lic;ul  lioni  Wall  of  ScrpenL^ 


[  To  face  page  202. 


ODDS   AND   ENDS.  203 

diamonds  might  attract  attention  which  would  end  in  trouble, 
I  slipped  them  from  my  fingers  under  the  table,  and  asked 
my  host  to  put  them  in  his  waistcoat  pocket. 

Before  the  menu  arrived,  a  bundle  of  knives  and  forks 
were  thrust  on  the  marble  table  before  us,  and  sticking  on  to 
the  ends  of  the  forks  were  rolls  of  bread.  Dish  No.  i  was 
Huevos  Rancheros,  which  means  eggs  served  ranche  fashion. 
A  couple  of  eggs  are  fried  for  a  portion,  put  on  to  a  plate 
and  covered  over  with  chilli  sauce.  Everything  Mexican  has 
chilli  in  it,  and,  not  infrequently,  garlic  !  How  the  folk  eat 
all  the  peppers,  chillis,  and  survive,  is  marvellous,  but  they  do  ! 

This  experiment  was  hot,  well-served,  and  delicious,  despite 
the  sanded  floor  and  primitive  surroundings.  i\fter  it  came 
Enchiladas.  This  dish  was  composed  of  four  tortillas  over- 
lapping one  another  on  the  plate,  sprinkled  with  cheese 
and  onion,  and  ornamented  with  a  lettuce  leaf  and  radishes, 
the  whole  well  soaked  in  chilli  sauce.  That  sauce  almost 
killed  me  ;  it  was  so  hot  that  I  was  obliged  to  open  my 
mouth  and  gasp  ! 

"Now  you  must  have  some  pulque,''  said  my  friend,  and 
accordingly  I  drank  some  of  that  milk  and  watery-looking 
liquid  which  comes  into  Mexico  City  by  train  loads  every 
morning,  after  being  extracted  from  the  cactus.  It  smelt 
like  bad  cheese,  but,  though  tasting  horrid,  it  was  just 
possible  to  drink  it.  Before  we  left  the  table  several  of 
our  companions  were  the  worse  for  pulque,  one  of  the 
curses  of  Mexico.  A  man  will  go  out  and  pawn  his  coat 
for  this  drink,  return  and  pawn  his  hat  or  knife,  anything 
and  everything,  in  order  to  obtain  the  soddening  liquid. 
It  does  not  excite,  it  appears  to  deaden  and  dull  the  senses. 

Seeing  what  looked  like  olives  upon  the  table,  as  my 
tongue  was  still  burning,  I  popped  one  into  my  mouth. 
Lo !  it  was  a  chililos,  or  small  green  chilli,  and  my  plight  was 
worse  than  ever.  I  did  not  find  it  "chilly,"  or  even  cooling, 
but  rather  like  a  live  volcano  !      Tears  began  to   flow,  my 


204  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

lips  to  swell,  and  I  felt  wretched  ;  yet  Mexicans  eat  whole 
dishes  of  these  between  the  courses,  as  we  nibble  nuts. 
What  sort  of  palates  have  they,  I  wonder  ? 

Our  third  course  consisted  of  Chiles  rellefws,  i.e.,  green 
peppers  stuffed  with  cream  cheese.  These  peppers  look 
almost  like  green  figs,  and  although  terribly  hot,  have  a 
nice  flavour,  but  as  they  are  not  spicy  enough  to  suit  the 
Mexican  palate,  the  inevitable  chilli  sauce  was  dashed  over 
them  likewise.  Last  came  another  national  dish,  namely, 
frijoles,  or  beans.  Served  with  thick  brown  sauce,  parmesan 
cheese,  and  crisply-toasted  tortilla,  they  were  excellent. 

It  interested  me  much  to  see  the  way  these  people  ate. 
Few  of  them  used  forks,  they  merely  doubled  bits  of  tortilla 
in  such  a  way  that  they  could  use  them  as  knife,  fork  or 
spoon,  shovelled  up  what  they  wanted,  and  popped  their 
server  and  food  into  their  mouth  together.  They  placed 
their  elbows  on  the  table  with  each  new  dish,  and  bending 
well  over  it,  gobbled  everything  up  without  lifting  their 
arms  from  the  table.  Every  man  tipped  up  his  plate  and 
drank  the  gravy  with  a  good  deal  of  noise. 

During  this  wonderful  repast,  which  cost  one  shilling  and 
tenpence  for  two,  we  had  various  entertainments,  though 
we  ourselves  appeared  to  form  the  chief  amusement  of  the 
evening,  judging  by  the  way  our  companions  stared.  A 
musical  performer  came  in,  and  doffing  his  hat — all  the 
guests  sat  in  theirs,  for  there  was  no  room  to  put  down 
anything  so  enormous — whistled  an  imitation  of  various 
instruments.  The  guitar  and  banjo  were  particularly  good. 
Several  of  the  guests  perused  the  newspaper  Government 
subsidises  to  encourage  reading,  which  is  sold  at  about  one 
farthing  a  copy.  Two  or  three  years  ago  the  sight  of  a 
Mexican  reading  would  have  been  impossible. 

It  was  all  very  entertaining  ;  when  suddenly  a  tre- 
mendous row  took  place.  Some  of  the  dogs,  lying  at  the 
feet  of  their  masters,  began  to  fight.       An  impromptu  dog 


ODDS   AND   ENDS.  205 

war  began.  Up  jumped  the  guests,  some  on  to  the  chairs 
and  tables,  others  took  their  hats  off  and  flung  them  at  the 
animals,  but  a  real  scuffle  and  terrible  noise  ensued,  and 
it  was  some  minutes  before  one  of  the  combatants  was 
forcibly  ejected  with  kicks  and  thumps  into  the  street,  and 
order  reigned  again. 

I  thoroughly  enjoyed  my  evening  in  that  "  tavern  in  the 
town,"  though  the  neighbourhood  was  risky,  and  probably 
every  man  at  the  tables  wore  his  knife,  while  many  carried 
a  revolver.  An  Indian  is  ready  to  use  either  weapon  at  a 
moment's  notice.  Travellers,  however,  are  safe  in  Mexico 
unless  they  annoy  or  insult  the  people  ;  if  they  do,  then 
woe  betide  them  ! 

Speaking  of  the  populace  reminds  me  of  the  extraordinary 
cruelty  to  animals  seen  in  the  streets  of  Mexico,  aye,  and 
to  children  also.  Small  girls  of  four  and  five  stagger  along, 
carrying  heavy  babies,  boys  of  six  and  seven  bear  weights 
upon  their  heads  a  mile  and  more  from  the  markets  that 
simply  horrify  a  stranger.  Poor  little  people,  they  seem 
all  shrunken  up  under  their  dreadful  loads  ;  but  that  is 
nothing  compared  with  what  the  animals  suffer.  There  are 
a  few  electric  tram  lines,  and  about  a  dozen  drawn  by 
mules,  all  skin  and  bone  ;  cabhorses  are  in  like  case,  and 
when  drawing  carts,  or  carrying  packs,  the  mules  will 
actually  lie  down  and  die  in  the  street,  while  men  try  to 
kick  and  beat  them  back  to  life.  It  is  a  disgrace  to 
humanity  !  Where  is  the  Society  for  the  Prevention  of 
Cruelty  to  Animals  ? 

The  origin  of  much  of  this  is  the  pulque  shop. 
The  public-house  is  the  club  of  the  poor  Britisher  ;  the 
saloon  is  the  American's  lounge,  and  the  pulque  shop  of 
Mexico  City  is  the  Indian's  Haven  of  Rest,  although  he 
really  finds  no  rest  there. 

Our  public-houses  prove  attractive  at  night  chiefly  owing 
to  the   warmth   and   glow   reflected   by   their  windows  ;    so 


2o6  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

attractive,  indeed,  are  the  coloured  lights  and  the  atmosphere 
of  comforting  heat,  that  one  can  hardly  wonder  if  poor, 
shivering,  half-starved  humanity  enters.  Perhaps  it  is  their 
misfortune,  not  their  fault,  that  they  have  no  comfortable 
home,  no  club,  probably  no  fire.  Here  they  find  all,  and 
for  the  paltry  sum  of  twopence,  poor  wretches ! 

'Tis  otherwise  with  the  pulque  shops,  where  there  are  no 
seats.  They  are  all  closed  by  law  at  five  o'clock,  therefore  a 
man  must  do  his  drinking  during  the  day,  and  it  is  wonderful 
what  a  large  amount  he  manages  to  consume  ere  shutting- 
up  time. 

Passing  along  a  Mexican  street  one  notices  a  sour  smell  ; 
it  is  caused  by  the  half-fermented  pulque.  The  shop  has 
no  windows,  merelv  laroe  doors,  over  which  are  huno- 
fringes  of  coloured  paper  to  attract  attention,  or  perhaps 
flies !  The  walls  are  painted  everywhere  with  strange 
mermaids  or  dolphins,  volcanoes  or  boats,  according  to  the 
fanciful  name  of  the  shop.  Inside  it  might  pass  for  a 
china  warehouse,  owing  to  the  rows  of  plates,  jugs  and 
mugs  ranged  upon  the  wall.  These  have  nothing  to  do 
with  pulque,  they  are  merely  for  ornament,  but  there  they 
are  in  hundreds.  The  milk-like  liquid  is  sold  in  tumblers. 
^Men,  women,  children,  aye,  and  babies  who  can  barely 
toddle,  all  drink  their  pulque  standing  at  the  counter  until — 
well,  until  they  can  stand  no  longer,  when  they  just  fall 
down,  and  I  have  never  seen  such  "dead-drunk"  people  as 
those  suffering  from  an  excess  of  pulque  ;  they  lie  as  if  dead, 
in  the  true  sense  of  the  word,  until  they  have  slept  off  its 
effects.  \ 

A  remnant  of  old  picture  writing  still  remains  in  Mexico, 
as  in  Holland.  Before  they  knew  how  to  write  the  name 
of  the  owner  of  a  shop,  they  painted  a  sign  by  which  the 
place  could  be  recognised.  Even  to-day  these  extra- 
ordinary pictures  are  to  be  seen  in  all  the  lower  parts  of 
the  town,  the  walls   are   like   grotesque   picture   books,  and 


Man  and  gourd,  with  which  he  extracts  pulque  (the  drink  of  the 
country)  from  the  mague  plant. 


[  To  face  page  206. 


ODDS   AND   ENDS. 


207 


even  in  the  better  quarters  titles  are  given  to  the  shops 
instead  of  the  owners'  names.  Some  of  them  are  funny 
and  extremely  inappropriate.  The  drink  shops  perhaps 
choose  the  strangest,  a  few  of  which  we  give  haphazard. 


In  Remembrance  of  the  P\ilure    .  Pulque 

The  Avenger ,, 

The  Last  Days  of  Pompeii ...  ,, 

Star  of  Bethlehem , , 

The  Peace  of  Cuba ,, 

The  Sorrow ,, 

The  Arts 

The  Mad  King ,, 

The  Little  Hill 

Diana's  Saloon ,, 

Temple  of  Love  ...'..  ,, 

The  White  Rose 

Toad  in  the  Hole Butcher 

(hangs  out  a  red  flag  to  denote 

he  has  freshly-killed  meat). 


Daughter  of  Snow Butcher 

The  Gladiator  .  .  .  Fruit  and  Vegetables 
The  Three  Graces     ■  ,, 

Golden  Star Grocer}- 

Adam  and  Eve ,, 

The  Senator Barber's  Shop 

The  Blue  Horse  ....  ,, 

The  Fountain  of  Gold  .     .  ,, 

The  Wolf  in  a  Cage  ...  ,, 

Sacred  Heart  of  Jesus  ....  Baker 
The  Pearl  of  Saint  Catherine  Pawnbroker 
The  Ideal  of  Art  ....  ,, 

The  Rose  of  the  Sea  ...  , , 

Shower  of  Gold     ....  ,, 


To  show  the  primitive  methods  which  still  obtain  in  this 
great  capital,  I  may  mention  that  the  streets  are  watered 
by  men  with  pails !  And  this  in  Mexico,  which  at  certain 
seasons  of  the  year  (just  before  the  rains  of  summer)  is 
quite  the  dustiest  city  in  the  world.  Out  they  come  by 
dozens,  these  Indians  with  their  cans,  and  inch  by  inch  en- 
deavour to  water  the  town.  It  is  but  an  endeavour,  for 
the  sun  is  hot,  and  in  a  quarter  of  an  hour  the  place 
becomes  as  dry  as  ever ! 

There  are  no  bath-chairs  ;  but  there  are  invalids — how 
can  it  be  otherwise  at  such  an  altitude  ?  In  this  respect 
again  the  arrangements  are  truly  wonderful. 

Mexicans  carry  everything  on  their  head  or  back,  and  no 
weight  seems  too  heavy  for  them.  The  result  is  they  have  a 
sort  of  box-like  chair  with  a  foot-board,  strapped  to  their 
shoulders  on  which  the  invalid  takes  his  airing,  back  to  back 
with  his  bearer.  It  looks  most  uncomfortable  for  both 
parties.  The  feet  come  somewhere  about  the  porter's  waist 
and  the    body   a  little    higher.       Of  course,    the  sick    man 


2o8  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

has  to  ride  backwards,  and  so  high  up  one  would  imagine 
he  must  feel  insecure  ;  but  apparently  this  is  not  the 
case,  for  I  once  walked  for  a  long  distance  behind  a  fat 
old  gentleman  who,  while  being  carried,  complacently  read 
his  newspaper. 

Furniture  removing  is  another  strange  performance  ;  there 
are  no  vans,  so  everything  has  to  be  carried  to  its  destination. 
Four  men,  each  holding  the  end  of  a  pole,  trot  along  with  a 
heavy  wardrobe  suspended  therefrom,  and  as  the  streets  are 
not  over  wide,  and  the  traffic  considerably  congested  by 
tram-cars,  the  width  of  a  wardrobe  passing  along  does  not 
tend  to  make  matters  less  difficult. 

The  town  is  built  on  a  swamp,  consequently  water  does 
not  easily  run  away.  When  I  was  there  all  the  drains  were 
up — they  had  been  up  for  a  year,  and  seemed  likely  to  be 
up  for  several  more.  But  for  the  odours  emitted,  it  would 
have  been  quite  interesting  to  watch  the  men  working  in  the 
depths  of  inky  black  mud.  It  was  hot  work,  and  a  pair 
of  cotton  trousers  constituted  their  sole  apparel,  as  they 
burrowed  in  liquid  mud,  converted  into  a  veritable  flood  by 
recent  rains. 

Mexico  is  built  more  or  less  on  piles,  no  longer  sticking 
up  above  the  surface  as  in  old  Aztec  days  ;  thus  it  happens 
many  of  the  houses  and  churches  are  crooked.  The 
foundations  being  swampy  and  insecure,  earthquakes  upset 
the  perpendicular.      'Tis  a  city  of  crooked  perpendiculars. 

Dreadful  smells  issue  from  the  open  drains,  and  it  is 
little  wonder  that  the  death-rate  averages  sixty  per  thousand. 
Looking  down  the  new  sewers  one  could  see  water  four  feet 
below  the  surface  —  black,  filthv-smellino;  water.  How 
strange,  when  one  remembers  the  City  was  completely  flooded 
a  couple  of  hundred  years  ago,  and  again  in  a  lesser  degree 
since,  the  authorities  have  never  moved  it  to  higher  ground. 
The  natives  do  not  seem  to  mind  odours  and  want  of  sanita- 
tion, or  the  extraordinary  sights  one  sees  at  every  street  corner 


ODDS   AND   ENDS.  209 

would  not  be  permitted.  Honi  soil  qui  mal y  pense,  but  in 
these  days  of  advanced  civilisation,  their  indifference  strikes 
a  strano'er  as  extraordinarv. 

On  one  occasion  I  actually  saw  a  military  band  giving  an 
afternoon  concert  round  an  open  sewer  !  It  was  their  habit 
to  play  every  Thursday  afternoon  in  that  thoroughfare,  and 
although  the  entire  street  was  up,  and  black  mud  and  drain 
pipes  littered  the  pathway,  yet  the  band  found  standing 
room  among  the  debris,  and,  unhindered  by  awful  odours, 
gave  their  usual  concert,  the  Mexican  Indians  thoroughly 
enjoying  the  combined  music  and  smells  ! 

When  digging  at  the  back  of  the  Cathedral,  where  the 
great  Aztec  Temple  once  stood,  some  wonderful  remains 
were  unearthed.  I  saw  the  great  altar  just  as  it  was  found 
in  the  black  mud.  It  weighed  some  tons,  and  was  almost 
perfect  ;  indeed,  it  will  be  one  of  the  most  interesting  relics 
in  the  Museum  hard  by.  Skulls,  cross  bones,  and  other 
devices  are  carved  upon  it,  forming  a  frieze  a  yard  wide. 
It  is  one  metre  ninety-two  centimetres  wide  in  front,  and  the 
sides  are  one  metre  sixty-hve  centimetres  in  length.  There 
are  four  rows  of  skulls,  each  row  composed  of  seven  skulls 
and  six  pairs  of  cross  bones.  The  skulls  are  in  profile,  and 
the  cross  bones  are  short  and  thick.  They  alternate, 
instead  of  the  cross  bones  being  placed  under  the  skulls  as 
we  are  accustomed  to  see  them. 

The  top  of  the  stone  slab  was  covered  originally  with 
skulls  and  cross  bones  of  the  same  character,  painted  in  blue 
and  white,  parts  of  which  are  worn  off.  At  one  corner  is  a 
niche  in  which  were  found  several  pieces  of  charred  bone. 
Three  steps  led  up  to  the  monument  from  the  front.  It 
was  evidently  used  as  an  altar,  and  in  the  opinion  of 
archaeologists  who  have  seen  it,  was  for  purposes  sacrificial. 
From  its  position  it  must  have  been  near  the  great  sacri- 
ficial altar  of  the  main  temple,  was  probably  built  some  time 
betore,  and  no  doubt  was  one  of  the  chain  of  chapels  which 

14 


2IO  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

surrounded  the  main  temple  originally  and  were  used  for 
worship  before  the  latter  was  completed. 

Father  Hunt  Cortes,  a  delightful  priest  of  Irish  extrac- 
tion, and  one  of  the  greatest  Aztec  scholars  in  Mexico, 
declares  that  this  altar  was  built  by  the  conquered  people  of 
Cuitlahuac. 

A  hundred  feet  away  was  discovered  another  enormous 
stone,  which  looked  like  an  engraved  baptismal  font  ;  but 
Senor  Leopoldo  Batres,  the  Government  Inspector,  said  it 
had  been  used  for  sacrificial  bones,  and  he  believed  the 
things  he  had  found  in  that  sewer  were  all  prior  to  Monte- 
zuma, probably  belonging  to  the  12th  century.  He  gave 
me  a  couple  of  whistles,  cut  out  of  shells,  found  close  to 
the  altar. 

A  hundred  years  before  the  main  Aztec  Temple  was  built, 
side  chapels,  seventy-eight  in  number,  were  erected  round 
the  main  site.  Two  of  these  side  chapels — described  by 
Sahagun,  as  existing  in  the  time  of  Cortes'  invasion,  were 
found  in  December,  1900,  during  the  excavations  in  Esca- 
lilleras  Street.  They  are  the  chapels  of  Fenecatl,  the  God 
of  Air,  and  Teoymique,  the  Goddess  of  Death. 

These  have  been  by  far  the  most  important  discoveries 
made  for  many  years  in  Mexico.  They  included  idols  of  all 
sizes,  gold  ornaments,  a  thousand  jade  beads — such  jade 
had  never  before  been  found  in  Mexico,  China  being  the 
nearest  point — censers  of  pottery,  in  which  incense  was 
burnt.  These  look  like  frying-pans,  in  the  bottom  of  which 
a,re  holes  to  allow  a  draught,  and  the  handles  are  carved  with 
serpents'  heads.  Copal  is  still  burnt  for  incense  in  some 
parts  of  Mexico  in  vessels  somewhat  similar.  Fragments  of 
copal,  which  still  retain  the  scent,  look  like  bits  of  limestone. 
Sacrificial  knives  were  also  found,  calendar  stones,  coloured 
pottery,  carved  shells,  and  ornamented  stones  of  all  kinds. 

It  is  supposed  that  the  Aztec  Temple  and  its  chapels 
covered  twenty  acres  of  ground,  and  there  is  now  an  idea  of 


Drainage  excavations,  Escalcrillas  Street,  in  which  over  ten  tons  of  Aztec  treasures 

were  found. 


Aztec  altar  exactly  as  found  in  the  drains. 


[  To  face  page  210. 


'^    n 

(U 


M  5 

O    ■" 
r:    ^ 


o 


ODDS   AND   ENDS,  211 

excavating  in  front  of  the  present  Cathedral  and  under  the 
chief  square  of  the  town,  in  order  to  unearth  the  entire 
Aztec  teocalli,  and  perhaps  find  Montezuma's  lost  treasure. 

As  soon  as  the  first  objects  were  discovered,  Seiior  Batres 
was  appointed  to  look  after  the  work,  and  General  Diaz 
wisely  recommended  a  grant  for  the  excavations  to  be  pur- 
sued with  care  ;  results  have  more  than  repaid  the  expense. 

Two  idols  were  first  discovered,  about  thirty  feet  below 
the  surface  of  the  road.  They  represent  Xehecatl,  the  God 
of  the  air,  and  his  friend  Quetzalcoatl.  The  former  is  not 
well  carved,  and  is  rather  weird  about  the  lower  regions. 
Beside  him  were  found  gold  jewels,  earrings,  a  head  orna- 
ment and  breast-plate.  These  figures  are  fifty-six  centi- 
metres high,  and  stand  on  bases  twenty  centimetres  square. 
Wonderful  to  relate,  in  spite  of  having  lain  for  seven  centuries 
in  the  wet  mud  on  which  Mexico  is  built,  the  colours  upon 
these  curious  figures  are  quite  distinct. 

A  number  of  skulls  were  found,  the  tops  generally  per- 
forated with  small  holes  ;  probably  they  were  some  of  the 
136,000  human  skulls,  victims  of  war,  which  Cortes  saw 
suspended  upon  a  wooden  frame-work.  They  are  almost 
identical  with  the  modern  Aztecs,  the  frontal  bones  are  nearly 
fiat,  and  do  not  in  the  least  resemble  any  Anglo-Saxon  race. 

The  knives  discovered,  probably  sacrificial,  are  of 
obsidian  ;    the  spearheads  of  fiint. 

Twenty  metres  of  the  famous  "  Wall  of  Serpents  "  were 
exhumed,  eight  feet  in  height  and  very  thick.  It  was 
unfortunately  crumbling.  Records  relate  that  this  wall 
(Coatepantli)  entirely  surrounded  the  Temple,  and  that  at 
measured  distances  enormous  serpents'  heads  were  carved. 
Many  of  them  have  now  been  found.  They  are  rudely 
carved,  but  none  the  less  interesting  for  that.  One  of 
them  was  a  metre  long,  by  half  a  metre  thick. 

W.  W.  Blake,  in  his  work  on  Toltec  and  Aztec  antiquities, 
surmises  that  there  were  at  least  two  hundred  and  eight  of 

14* 


212  MEXICO  AS   1   SAW  IT. 

these  heads.  "  A  serpent,"  he  says,  "in  pagan  monuments, 
is  a  sure  sign  of  Phallic  worship."  So  the  ancients  may 
have  been  as  fond  of  pulque  or  its  equivalent  as  the 
moderns. 

When  men  were  digging  in  the  drains,  amongst  the 
various  things  dug  up  was  a  large  earthenware  olla, 
standing  about  a  metre  high,  which  had  formerly  been  used 
for  burning  a  perpetual  fire  in  the  temple.  Originally 
painted  blue  and  white,  some  of  the  colouring  still  remains. 

One  of  the  stone  slabs  is  supposed  to  be  a  replica  of  the 
Book  of  Famine.  The  people  were  without  seed,  and 
when  at  last  the  rain  mercifully  fell,  crops  sprang  from  the 
ground  ;  this  slab  was  hewn  as  a  token  of  gratitude.  It 
represented  the  sun  with  streams  of  water  issuing  from  the 
centre.  The  rock  of  famine  itself  has  not  been  found, 
although  described  in  ancient  history. 

The  eagle,  still  representative  of  Mexico,  dates  from  the 
old  Aztec  days.  Indeed,  among  the  treasures  discovered  in 
the  underground  workings  was  a  stone  with  a  carved  eagle 
upon  it.  This  was  the  date  stone  or  almanac,  and  each 
animal  represented  a  day  or  a  month.  Strangely  enough, 
all  but  five  of  the  days  of  the  month  were  the  same  as 
in  China,  which  again  shows  a  connection  between  the 
ancients  of  Mexico  and  the  Chinese  people. 

One  of  the  gods  was  particularly  fascinating.  In  his 
sitting  position  he  seemed  about  three  feet  high.  He  was 
christened  the  Indio  Triste,  or  sad  Indian,  a  name  derived 
from  his  pensive  expression,  and  his  countenance  is  certainly 
characteristic  of  the  title. 

-  A  couple  of  stone  cylinders,  representing  the  Aztec  cycle 
of  fifty-two  years  (not  fifty-two  weeks),  by  which  arrange- 
ment time  was  measured,  as  we  mete  out  a  century,  were 
dug  out.  The  first  is  one  and  a  quarter  metres  high,  the 
other  about  three  quarters  of  a  metre  ;  both  were  perfect, 
and  handsomely  carved. 


Replica  of  Book  of  Famine. 


Aztec  eagle. 


}tludcrn  Indian  in  dug-out  canoe,  \'iga  Canal. 


[  To  face  page  212 


< 


ODDS  AND   ENDS.  213 

Another  stone  slab  found  near  the  statue  of  <Tlaloc,  god 
of  rains,  is  a  good  specimen  of  Aztec  carving. 

It  would  take  pages  to  give  a  list  of  all  these  wonderful 
discoveries,  which  represent  as  much  again  as  previously 
existed  in  the  Mexican  Museum  ;  suffice  it  to  say  there 
were  models  of  musical  instruments,  flageolets,  drums,  turtle 
shells  made  into  drums,  with  stag-horns  to  beat  them,  and 
rattles.  Strangely  enough,  the  same  kind-  of  rattle  is  used 
to-day  by  the  modern  Aztec  in  the  Sierra  Madre  for 
frightening  birds. 

These  Aztec  antiquities  are  to  end  their  days  in  the 
Museum,  which  already  contains  the  finest  collection  in  the 
world.  I  was  kindly  shown  over  this  Museum  by  Sefior 
Jesus  Galindo  y  Villa  and  Dr.  Manuel  Urbina,  both  officials 
who  have  written  interestino^  books  on  the  various  treasures. 
So  much  for  the  past,  now  for  the  present. 

Life  has  little  value,  and  death  many  quaint  interests,  in 
Mexico.  All  corpses  must  be  buried  within  twenty-four 
hours,  as  in  other  tropical  countries.  This  necessitates 
considerable  expedition,  and  owing  to  the  enormous  death- 
rate,  everything  is  done  to  help  forward  speedy  funerals. 

Coffins  are  kept  ready-made.  In  the  case  of  poor  people 
— and  it  is  among  the  poorer  classes  one  finds  distinct 
manners  and  customs — one  of  the  family  goes  off  the 
moment  his  friend  is  dead,  buys  a  coffin,  or  if  too  poor 
merely  hires  it  for  the  day,  after  which,  shouldering  the 
ghastly  burden  on  high,  he  walks  home.  One  can  see 
people  any  day  carrying  coffins. 

The  corpse  is  attired  in  all  its  best.  A  gentleman  is 
garbed  in  his  dress-suit,  a  lady  in  her  newest  silk  gown, 
adorned  with  jewels,  sometimes  all  the  family  treasures, 
although  these  are  wisely  taken  off  before  the  corpse  is 
buried,  to  prevent  theft  from  the  dead  body  which  would 
otherwise  be  speedily  dug  up  and  pilfered.  Candles  are 
placed  near  the  departed,  and  the  plate  of  salt  so  common 


214  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

to  all  countries  is  well  in  evidence,  reminding  one  more 
particularly  of  the  Highlands  of  Scotland. 

Until  quite  recently  it  was  the  fashion  to  bury  all  the  dead 
clothed  as  nuns  and  friars,  so  reverenced  was  the  Church, 
and  at  that  time  whole  families  were  constantly  employed 
in  making  suqh  grave  clothes  for  sale.  Even  to-day, 
among  some  of  the  more  conservative  families,  the  corpse 
is  dressed  in  this  manner.  These  grave-clothes  are  called 
mortaja,  but  the  fashion  is  dying  out,  and  "  best  clothes  " 
are  more  universal, 

Mexico  boasts  no  ordinary  hearse,  with  horses  and  black 
trappings.  Every  coffin,  whether  it  belong  to  the  rich  or 
the  poor,  must  go  to  its  appointed  cemetery  on  a  tram-line 
in  a  properly-arranged  car.  These  may  be  seen  any  day,  at 
any  hour,  following  the  general  tram-cars. 

In  the  case  of  rich  people  a  handsome  black  car  is  used, 
and  flowers  are  put  upon  the  coffin,  which  lies  under  a 
canopy,  and  behind  this  hearse  on  rollers  comes  the  car 
conveying  men  friends  ;  women  do  not  as  a  rule  attend 
funerals.  The  cemeteries  are  miles  out  of  the  town,  and  the 
mules  gallop  at  a  great  pace  ;  the  second  half  of  the  burial 
service  is  read  at  the  grave  side,  as  no  corpse  is  allowed 
to  be  carried  into  a  place  of  worship. 

Now  occurs  a  strange  ceremony  ;  the  coffin  is  never 
screwed  down,  it  is  fastened  by  a  lock,  secured  with  due 
pomp,  the  key  being  held  by  the  chief  mourner.  At  the 
grave  side,  before  the  coffin  is  lowered  into  the  earth,  the 
nearest  relative  unfastens  it,  so  that  the  Manager  of  the 
^Cemetery  may  look  inside  and  satisfy  himself  it  contains 
a  corpse,  which  other  friends  identify,  after  which  he  relocks 
it.  Opening  the  coffin  at  the  last  moment  is  enforced  by 
law,  to  prevent  murder  or  fraud.  When  the  coffin  is  lowered, 
the  key  is  given  back  to  the  chief  mourner. 

In  the  case  of  children  a  white  car  is  used,  and  a  doctor 
told  me  that  in  one  instance  which  came  under  his  personal 


ODDS   AND   ENDS.  215 

notice,  a  bejewelled  child  of  ten  was  laid  on  a  white  satin 
pillow  with  a  wreath  of  flowers  upon  its  head,  its  lips  and 
cheeks  rouged,  and  its  eyebrows  marked  in  black. 

What  strano;e  funeral  customs  this  world  can  show  ! 
Mexico  has  another  weird  and  remarkable  side.  Those 
public  funeral  cars  are  most  gruesome  ;  "  sardine  boxes  " 
some  wag  called  them.  They  are  black  wooden  vehicles 
with  three  small  doors  in  a  row  ;  each  door  hides  three 
shelves,  one  above  the  other,  like  a  wine  bin,  and  into 
these  the  hired  coffins  are  run.  At  the  top  of  each  set 
is  a  chimney.  I  myself  have  seen  a  coffin  placed  on  chairs 
in  the  street,  waiting  for  the  public  hearse  to  come  and  fetch 
it.  Behind  this  dreadful-lookinQ;  hearse  comes  the  tram-car 
marked  "  Funebre,"  into  which  the  relatives  and  friends 
jump,  and  ride  off  to  the  cemetery. 

/  Poor  people  never  leave  a  corpse  till  closed  up  ;  they  are 
afraid  lest  evil  spirits  should  run  away  with  it,  or  do  it  any 
harm,  so  they  lay  it  out,  place  candles  around,  get  in  a  large 
supply  of  pulque  and  settle  down  to  a  sort  of  Irish  wake. 
They  drink  hard,  sing,  even  dance  and  make  merry.  How 
strange  that  this  should  be  the  custom  in  so  many  countries 
far  apart  !  Indian  corn  on  the  cob  is  generally  placed  in 
coffins  throughout  Mexico,  so  that  the  dead  may  not  be 
hungry  on  their  way  to  another  land,  just  as  the  Aztecs 
did  thousands  of  years  ago  ! 

All  Souls'  Day  is  the  great  fete  of  the  dead.  From  the 
first  streaks  of  dawn  whole  families  may  be  seen  plodding  to 
the  cemeteries.  They  take  candles  and  food,  and  spend  the 
day  among  the  graves.  Masses  are  said,  and  a  form  of 
ancestral  worship  is  practised,  such  as  still  obtains  in  China, 
and  somewhat  similar  to  what  is  prevalent  every  Friday 
(their  Sunday)  in  Morocco,  when  the  women  enjoy  their 
weekly  outing  by  wailing  over  the  graves  of  their  Moham- 
medan forefathers. 

In   Mexico  candles  are  planted  round  the  grave,  lighted 


2i6  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

and  left  to  burn  themselves  out.  Flowers  are  placed  upon 
the  tomJD,  and  the  family  picnic  close  by,  tell  and  re-tell 
stories  of  the  dear  departed  whose  death  they  have  come 
to  mourn,  and  whose  virtues  they  wish  to  perpetuate.  They 
leave  the  remnants  of  the  feast  behind,  and  dogs  are  muzzled 
that  they  may  not  steal  food  intended  for  the  dead. 

This  feast  of  All  Souls  is  one  of  the  events  of  the  year. 
In  such  places  as  Aguas  Calientes,  if  there  have  been  a  death 
during  the  preceding  year,  an  open  coffin  is  placed  in  the 
room,  and  the  bereaved  family  sit  round  it  in  commemora- 
tion, mourn  and  relate  the  good  qualities  of  their  lost  relative. 
In  other  parts  "  dead  tables"  are  arranged.  Quite  a  line  of 
■these  tables  may  be  seen  in  a  cemetery.  A  skull,  bowl  of 
holy  water,  and  candles  are  essential,  and  whatever  food, 
drink  or  smoke  the  survivors  can  afford.  Sweets  made  to 
represent  skulls,  cross-bones,  corpses  and  other  weird  things, 
find  a  ready  sale  during  All  Souls'  Festival.  These  are  called 
Mtie7^tos,  and  many  of  them  are  only  made  to  commemorate 
the  dead.  Toys,  too,  are  fashioned  in  the  form  of  miniature 
coffins,  funeral  cars,  skeletons  and  devils,  as  reminders  to 
children  that  death  is  ever  present.  Professor  Starr 
made  a  splendid  collection  of  these  strange  things,  and  gave 
them  to  the  Folk  Lore  Society  of  London. 

The  Cemetery  of  Dolores,  one  of  many,  is  most  pic- 
turesque, but  it  also  has  its  weird  side.  For  instance, 
visitors,  mourners  and  coffins  all  arrive  by  tram  !  At  the 
gates  are  lodges,  outside  which  are  seats  for  friends  and 
trestles  for  coffins.  Amongst  the  various  notices  posted  up 
may  be  read  : 


First  class  grave,  digging  and  tilin 

I        .         .10  do 

lars  Mexican  (about  £\). 

,,                ,,         for  children 

•     5 

Earth  grave.     Digging  . 

.     I 

First  class  grave  in  perpetuity 

.     200 

,,               ,,        for  seven  years 

.     60 

Second         ,,                 ,, 

.     2 

Sixth 

.     Free. 

I.    Urns  for  cremated  hones.  2.    Spoons  for  burning  incense. 

4.   Tlaloc,  god  of  rains. 


3.   Arrow  lieads. 


To  face  pa  i;e  217.] 


ODDS   AND   ENDS.  217 

This    is    the    o-ist     of    the    announcement  ;     we    saw    its 
practical  side  later. 

In  the  poorer  part  of  the  cemetery  we  came  upon  an 
acre  of  ground  with  hundreds  of  empty  graves,  so  full, 
indeed,  that  there  was  barely  a  foot  of  earth  between  one 
set  and  the  next.  They  were  literally  as  close  as  possible. 
This  ground  had  been  cleared,  that  is  to  say  the  allotted 
seven  years  having  expired,  the  tombs  had  been  emptied — 
the  bones  removed,  but  bits  of  old  broken  coffins,  which 
had  escaped  burning,  still  lay  about.  We  saw  piles  of 
human  bones  later,  thrust  into  caves  or  stowed  away  in  great 
chambers  made  for  the  purpose.  Skulls^arms,  legs,  every 
part,  in  fact,  of  what  had  once  been  living  people,  were  all 
huddled  together  like  mere  rubbish. 
^  The  Aztecs  cremated  their  dead — but  Catholic  Mexicans 
keep  the  bones  and  burn  the  coffins. 

In  the  better  part  of  the  cemetery  flowers  abound,  red  and. 
pink  wild  geraniums,  iris  and  arum  lilies  clustered  every- 
where. It  seemed  to  be  the  fashion  to  mount  a  photograph 
of  the  dear  departed  into  the  headstone  ;  some  of  these 
pictures  were  weird  ;  they  were  generally  photographs,  much 
discoloured  by  age,  but  mounted  right  into  the  marble  slab, 
and  covered  with  glass. 

Leaving  the  cemetery,  we  noticed  masses  of  colour  on 
one  of  the  handsomest  graves  ;  going  nearer  to  investigate, 
we  found  that  it  was  decorated  with  paper  flowers,  wreaths 
of  bright  pink,  yellow,  green  or  white  artificial  blooms. 
They  were  quite  common  things,  made  probably  by  the 
family  at  home,  but  oh  !  so  gorgeous.  I  was  preparing 
to  take  a  photograph  of  such  strange  trophies  so  incon- 
gruously coupled  with  the  most  solemn  ending  of  life, 
when  I  heard  voices,  and  going  round  to  the  other  side 
of  the  grave,  was  surprised  to  find  a  picnic  party  !  Five 
people  dressed  in  sad  habiliments  of  woe,  sitting  near  the 
head-stone  with  lighted  candles  beside  them,   were  heartily 


2i8  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

enjoying  their  luncheon.  My  photograph  was  never  taken, 
ahhough  they  all  seemed  so  jovial  they  would  probably 
have  enjoyed  the  performance,  but  I  passed  on. 

This  queer  picnic  party  had  come  out  to  the  cemetery 
to  honour  a  dead  relative  on  his  saint's  name  day  ;  but  some- 
how their  clothes  of  deepest  black,  and  the  grave,  seemed 
out  of  keeping  with  a  picnic,  and  the  decorations  would 
have  been  more  suitable  for  a  Christmas  tree. 

On  another  occasion  I  saw  a  baby's  strange  funeral. 
It  was  proceeding  along  a  country  road.  The  mother 
carried  an  empty  coffin,  while  the  father  bore  his  "angel" 
on  his  head.  The  child  had  been  laid  out  on  a  board, 
dressed  up  to  resemble  some  saint,  such  as  San  Antonio 
de  Padua,  El  Santo  Nifio  de  la  Dolorosa,  or  San  Luis 
Gonzaga — a  favourite  method  of  procedure — and  flowers 
and  festoons  hung  all  around  the  child,  while  above 
the  little  body  was  an  arch  of  flowers.  When  they 
reached  the  cemetery,  the  "angel"  would  be  put  into 
the   coffin   and  buried. 

'Twas  a  touching  scene  I  once  came  upon.  A  child 
had  died  ;  it  was  only  a  baby — eight  or  ten  months  old, 
perhaps — still,  its  little  life  was  ended.  It  had  opened 
its  eyes  on  the  beauties  of  this  world  merely  to  close  them 
again-.  Its  ears  had  heard  the  note  of  the  mocking  bird, 
smiles  had  played  upon  its  features  ;  but  that  note  would 
never  cause  another  flicker  of  pleasure.  The  child  was 
dead,  and  the  mocking  bird's  song  was  its  funeral  dirge. 

Poor  mother !  She  was  only  a  child  herself,  little  more 
than  fourteen,  and  yet  the  chord  of  maternity  had  been 
struck,  deeply,  oh  so  deeply,  down  in  her  woman's  heart. 
I  looked  at  her  mourning  over  her  baby.  Was  ever 
more  pathetic  scene  enacted  in  this  world  than  the  child- 
mother  bewailing  the  loss  of  her  baby  doll  ?  The  little 
thing  was  stretched  out  on  a  grass  mat,  and  sitting  on 
her  heels   beside   it   was  the   poor  mother  who    had    given 


ODDS   AND   ENDS.  219 

it  life.  She  was  not  crying.  Some  grief  is  too  deep  for 
tears  ;  she  was  barely  moaning  as  she  swayed  herself  to 
and  fro  and  clenched  her  hands  till  the  blood  almo&t 
gushed  from  her  slim  brown  fingers. 

Poor,  pretty  little  soul,  how  sad  she  was!  Her  baby, 
her  angel,  was  dead.  There  seemed  nothing  left  now. 
It  was  all  she  had  ;  what  were  the  few  reeds  composing 
the  hut,  or  the  bits  of  pottery  ;  what  was  even  the  little 
picture  of  the  Virgin  of  Guadalupe  above  her  altar, 
when  her  babe  was  dead  ?  The  men  would  be  in  from 
the  fields  presently,  and  then  the  singing  and  noise  and 
death  rites  would  begin.  Rockets  and  fireworks  would  be 
sent  off  to  tell  Heaven  another  child's  soul  was  soaring  to 
the  angels.  Now,  however,  she  was  alone,  these  precious 
moments  were  hers,  all  hers  ;  she  was  growing  from  a  child 
to  a  woman  over  the  corpse  of  her  own  baby  ! 
\/  To  turn  to  things  more  cheerful,  the  street  cries  of 
Mexico  are  varied  and  numerous.  All  day,  from  4  a.m.  to 
10  p.m.  the  cries  may  be  heard. 

"  Gorditasde  Horno,"^ — "  Corncakes  hot  from  the  oven,"  is  a  favourite  cry. 

"  Toman  nues," — "  Will  you  have  nuts  ?  "  which  said  nuts  are  sold  by  the  sack  load, 
from  the  street  gutter. 

"  Carbosin," — "  Charcoal,  sir  ?  "  A  few  lumps,  enough  to  fill  one  hand,  are  sold  at 
a  time,  and  serve  to  cook  the  family  food  for  a  whole  day.  They  are  placed  in  a  soup- 
plate  and  coaxed  into  flame  by  a  reed-plaited  fan. 

They  have  the  strangest  methods  of  brushing  a  room.  To 
begin  with,  the  housemaids  are  men !      They  do  everything. 

To  sweep  a  floor  a  wet  duster  is  tied  to  a  piece  of  stick 
about  a  yard  long.  This  is  merely  flicked  over  the  floor,  and 
being  wet  licks  up  the  dust.  In  a  house,  church,  or  museum, 
one  often  sees  a  man  at  work  with  his  drapeador,  which 
he  rinses  out  in  a  pail  whenever  he  thinks  fit.  Needless  to 
remark,  the  corners  of  the  rooms  never  get  cleaned  out !  In 
grand  houses  the  floors  are  entirely  carpeted  (no  parquet  or 
rugs),  and  then  a  broom  has  to  be  brought  into  requisition. 

When  employers  want  to  summon  a  servant,  they  do  not 


220  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

ring  a  bell,  for  the  simple  reason  that  there  seldom  are  any, 
they  just  clap  their  hands.  It  sounded  funny  at  first.  A 
man  would  go  out  on  to  the  balcony  of  the  patio,  and  clap 
his  hands,  when  at  once  a  servant  appeared. 

Domestics  do  not  live  luxuriously  ;  they  exist  on  tortillas, 
and  hot  sauces,  and  generally  sleep  rolled  up  in  a  blanket  on 
the  floor.  In  one  hotel  at  which  I  stayed,  the  lady  and 
gentleman  occupying  the  room  next  to  mine  had  a  man- 
servant. He  wore  Mexican  dress,  viz.,  very  tight  trousers, 
a  gaily  braided  coat,  and  a  silver-embroidered  hat,  the 
value  of  which  latter  was  probably  from  £2  to  ^3  sterling. 
For  days  and  days  I  watched  that  man.  The  rooms  opened 
on  a  wide  balcony  with  a  garden  below,  and  every  day,  for 
hours,  he  hung  over  that  balcony,  doing  nothing  but  smoke, 
merely  waiting  to  be  clapped  for.  Sometimes  he  would  put 
on  his  tilma,  stick  his  head  through  the  middle  and  curl  him- 
self up  against  his  master's  door,  listening  for  orders  which 
rarely  came.  I  do  not  know  whether  he  slept  there,  but  I 
often  saw  him,  even  on  a  cold  night,  on  my  way  home  from 
a  dinner  party. 

Mexico  possesses  every  sort  of  climate,  for  it  is  nearly 
two  thousand  miles  from  north  to  south,  or  as  lone:  as 
from  Iceland  to  Gibraltar.  Almost  every  flower,  fruit  and 
vegetable  known  to  man  may  be  found  within  its 
boundaries,  and  every  mineral  this  world  produces  has 
been  discovered  in  the   Republic. 

Oddly  enough,  among  the  mammoth  pre-historic  animals 
in  the  Museum  in  Mexico  City,  are  skeletons  of  horses  and 
cattle,  yet  Cortes  found  neither.  It  is  strange  they  should 
have  been  so  completely  exterminated,  for  we  read  that  at 
the  time  of  the  Spanish  invasion  the  Aztecs  looked  upon  the 
horses  imported  by  their  conquerors  with  superstition  and 
dread.  Without  that  fear  they  would  probably  never  have 
been  vanquished.  '  '"~"x 

Constantly  in  Mexico,  one  is  reminded  of  the  East.     The 


ODDS   AND   ENDS.  221 

outside  market  in  Mexico  City  might  be  the  Soko  in  Tangier. 
The  same  enormous  straw  hats  are  worn,  and  a  rebozo  instead 
of  a  bernouse.  The  Indian  women,  with  their  babies  on 
their  backs,  recall  their  Arab  sisters  ;  both  carry  enormous 
weights  upon  their  heads,  and  are  either  barefooted  or 
sandalled.  They  have  the  same  olive  skin  and  dark  hair, 
but  the  Arab  is  a  finer  specimen  of  mankind  than  the 
average  Indian. 

In  both  countries  one  sees  public  letter-writers  at  the 
street  corners  ;  but  in  Mexico  they  sit,  instead  of  squatting 
cross-legged  as  does  a  Moor  ;  there  are  the  same  medicine 
men,  the  same  deformed  beggars  ;  many  of  the  superstitions 
are  identical,  but  while  the  Arab  becomes  intoxicated  by 
srnoking  hashis  or  kiff,  the  Mexican  gets  drunk  on  pulque. 
./The  religions  differ  ;  but  both  races  are  equally  devout 
and  superstitious  ;  although  one  is  Roman  Catholic  and  the 
other  Mohammedan,  both  go  regularly  to  their  respective 
places  of  worship  and  tell  their  beads. 

One  need  not  go  outside  the  market  of  Mexico  City 
to  see  the  real  native,  in  all  his  glory,  surrounded  by 
such  flowers,  such  fruit,  and  such  vegetables !  All  have 
arrived  by  boat  from  the  floating  gardens  a  few  hours  pre- 
viously, and  here  women,  babies  and  dogs  squat  together, 
howl,  shriek  and  bargain  in  truly  Oriental  fashion.  It  is  all 
interesting,  this  strangely  barbaric  market,  right  in  the  centre 
of  the  modern  civilisation  of  cosmopolitan  Mexico  City. 

The  doctors'  stores  are  truly  wonderful.  Every  conceiv- 
able herb  and  root  is  on  sale,  and  each  has  its  specific  use. 
Rows  of  skinned  moles  and  bats  were  hanging  up,  and  we 
ventured  to  ask  what  they  were  for. 

"  To  purify  the  blood,"  was  the  astonishing  reply,  "  they 
cost  one  halfpenny  (two  cents)  each,  and  are  stewed  and 
eaten." 

"  And  what  is  that  long,  brown,  bean-like-looking  thing 
used  for  ?  " 


222  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

"  Headache.  You  take  out  the  seeds,  soak  them  in  wine, 
and  lay  them  on  the  aching  part." 
^Among  the  many  and  marvellous  cures  for  disease  is  one 
for  neuralgia  ;  this  consists  of  putting  something  on  the 
,'nei've  just  above  where  the  jaw-bone  joins  the  skull,  and 
one  constantly  sees  people  walking  about  with  a  patch  of 
orange  or  lemon  peel  the  size  of  a  shilling  on  the  affected 
temple.  Nicotine  from  a  cigar  is  sometimes  put  on  a  bit  of 
paper  and  plastered  on,  or  any  aromatic  leaf,  and  a  piece  of 
snake-skin  is  also  much  prized  for  headache. 

An  alligator's  tooth  is  dropped  into  boiling  water,  well 
stirred  round,  and  the  mixture  drunk  to  cure  heart  disease 
or  the  bite  of  a  rattlesnake.  Oak  galls  are  ground  up  fine 
and  put  on  sore  places  ;  ants'  nests  are  not  used  for  baths  as 
in  Finland,  but  are  boiled  and  drunk  to  prevent  hiccough  or 
sickness.  In  fact  the  list  of  queer  remedies  is  endless,  and 
a  medicine  man  or  woman  sells  them  in  every  market  place. 

Strangers  in  Mexico  are  surprised  at  night  to  see  a  small 
lantern  standing  in  the  middle  of  the  road  or  at  a  street 
corner.  It  belongs  to  the  policeman,  who  should  be  near  ; 
but  if  anyone  can  steal  one  of  these  lanterns  and  return 
it  to  the  police  station,  he  is  well  rewarded  and  the  police- 
man reprimanded  for  negligence.  They  are  signals  for  the 
mounted  officer  when  he  goes  his  rounds.  That  is  all  right  ; 
but  the  thief  can  equally  evade  this  signal  of  the  law  ! 

Every  policeman  seems  to  have  a  dog.  Generally  some 
mongrel  hound  is  curled  up  near  the  lantern.  It  is  surprising 
to  hear  the  policeman  whistle.  Every  hour  every  man  on 
duty  calls  in  this  way  to  his  neighbour,  and  so  the  signal  is 
passed  on  and  on.  By  the  same  ingenious  means  a  thief  or  a 
drunken  person  is  handed  from  policeman  to  policeman,  each 
constable  only  having  to  go  to  the  end  of  his  beat,  where 
he  gives  the  delinquent  in  charge  to  the  next  link  of  the 
law's  chain  till  he  eventually  reach  the  lock-up. 

Then    there    are    night    watchmen  ;   these,    however,    no 


ODDS   AND   ENDS.  223 

longer  call  out  the  hours.  Big  houses  always  have  a  watch- 
man, who  generally  sits  huddled  up  in  a  blanket  on  the 
front  door-step,  looking  very  sleepy,  with  his  lantern  beside 
him.  Of  course,  they  may  be  a  protection  ;  but  they 
appear  old,   decrepit    and   drowsy. 

tThe    first  thing    to    teach   a    Mexican    Indian    is    to    be 

honest  ;  by  nature  he  is  a  most  awful  thief.      Warning  : 

take  nothing  to  Mexico  of  value,  only  what  is  absolutely 
necessary,  and  never  leave  anything  unlocked)  In  the 
street  the  Mexicans  will  seize  a  purse  or  a  brooch  during 
broad  daylight  ;  or  take  a  man's  pin  out  of  his  scarf ! 
Fraudulent  notes  and  silver  are  in  constant  circulation  ; 
short  change  is  invariably  given  to  strangers.  All  this  is 
sad  but  true,  and  although  I  fear  my  Mexican  friends  will 
disapprove  of  what  I  have  said,  I  hope  they  will  realise 
the  justice  of  my  remarks,  and  do  their  best  to  teach 
Indians  common  honesty. 

Look  at  the  door-mats  ;  they  are  chained  to  the  floor. 
Look  at  the  seats  in  the  chief  shops  of  the  City  ;  they 
are  secured  to  the  counter.  Look  at  the  ink-bottles  in  the 
General  Post  Office  ;  they  are  sunk  down  into  the  tables 
so  that  they  cannot  possibly  be  moved.  Even  the  combs 
and  tooth-brushes  (yes,  public  tooth-brushes  ! )  may  be  seen 
chained  to  the  walls  in  hotels.  Everything  is  done  to  try 
and  prevent  theft;  yet  innumerable  pawn-shops  groan 
beneath  the  weight  of  ill-gotten  property,  kodaks,  opera 
glasses,  and  endless  articles  stolen  from  houses  as  well  as 
travellers'  trunks. 

I  heard  of  one  English  coachman,  who  on  going  to 
Mexico  found  it  terribly  difficult  to  keep  his  sponges 
and  curry-combs.  At  last  one  day  he  said  in  desplir 
to  his  master : 

"  Lor',  sir,  these  people  would  pawn  their  own 
mother,  and  steal  the  teeth  out  of  their  sweetheart's 
head." 


224  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

It  is  easy  to  steal  and  obtain  money  on  the  theft.  Every 
street  has  pawnbrokers  ready  to  receive  goods — even  the 
State  has  its  pawn  shops,  the  Monte  de  PzedadhGing  the  chief. 
When  founded  in  1776,  it  was  endowed  with  300,000  dollars. 
The  idea  was  to  protect  people  from  the  general  pawn- 
brokers' usurious  over-charge.  No  interest  was  exacted  on 
a  loan  ;  but  when  redeemed  the  owner  was  expected  to  give 
some  suitable  sum  for  public  charity.  Need  we  say  the 
owner  did  nothing  of  the  kind  ?  Consequently  a  nominal 
charge  is  now  made.  When  the  borrower  fails  to  pay 
interest,  the  pledge  is  put  up  for  sale  ;  if  at  the  end  of  a 
month  it  has  not  been  sold,  the  price  is  reduced,  and  so  on 
till  it  is  disposed  of  for  the  amount  of  the  original  loan. 
But  now  comes  the  wonderful  part  of  the  transaction. 
Supposing  the  article  be  sold  for  more  than  was  advanced  to 
its  owner — that  extra  sum  is  actually  handed  over  to  that 
owner !  Thus  the  pawn  shop  does  not  gain  anything 
beyond  its  small  interest. 

Surely  this  must  be  the  only  pawn  shop  in  the  world 
worked  on  such  terms  ;  but  as  it  is  invariably  crowded, 
the  business  appears  to  be  a  thriving  one. 

Minor  pawnbrokers  prove  a  veritable  curse  ;  they  are 
generally  situated  next  to  a  pulque  shop  with  its  china, 
decorations  and  sour  smells,  and  men  pawn  their  rags  for  that 
extra  glass  which  sends  them  reeling  to  their  miserable  homes. 
To  prevent  theft  of  letters  post-office  boxes  are 
provided.  The  postal  system  is  still  a  little  vague  in 
Mexico.  Letters  o-oino-  from  one  end  of  the  town  to 
the  other  sometimes  take  two  days  en  route  instead 
of  a  couple  of  hours,  as  in  London.  Besides,  they 
occasionally  get  mislaid  altogether.  Consequently  all 
business  houses  have  their  correspondence  addressed  to 
"  Box  So-and-so,"  at  a  certain  post  office.  It  is  quite  funny 
to  see  the  rows  of  pigeon  holes,  with  plate  glass  between 
them  and  the  public,  the  number  painted  on  each  in  gold. 


r 


Discovered  in  drains  of  Mexico  cily.   |anuar\'.  1901. 


[  To  face  page  224. 


ODDS  AND   ENDS.  ,,, 

The  glass  enables   the  owner  to  see  at   once   if  there  are 
any  letters  for  hin, ;  if  not,  he  need  not  unlock  his  little  bo 

In  the  olden  days  .t  was  quite  customary  for  the  burolar 
of  the  cty  to  go  to  a  certain  Church   on   the   outslcirts  o 
Mex,co,  called  V,rgin   de   Soledad,  and  before  starting  on 
some  great   robbery,  offer   up   a   prayer  for  success!      This 
prayer  known  as  Oracion  del  Jnsto  Jue.,  and  according 

to  the  va  ue  of  the  spoil,  the  Church  benefited  in  candles-  ^ 

selves  with'th""        ."    ''°P'"''    '"^   '^^   ^^urches  them- 
selves  with  the  r  crowds  are  still  the  happy  hunting-ground 
of    th.eves.       At    Amecameca,    when    the    pilgrims    were 
chng  up  on  t  eir  hands  and  knees  to  that'sa^red  shrine 
an    Amencan    fr.end    was    robbed    of    a   valuable    watch 
spue  of  h,s  coat  being  buttoned  up  I  ' 

Christ"ofT  h".  °".  ^f .  Wednesday,    when    the    famous 
i-hnst  of  the  Holy  Sepulchre,  which,  although  life-size  only 

i^ansh  Church  with  pomp  and  ceremony.     On   the   bushes 

T-  .  ,  ""?  '''-^  °'  P"g"'"^'  d--es,  even  hairs  fom 
the,r  heads,  left  as  offerings  of  devotion,  and  for  ^Z 
/rluna  (good  fortune).  Such  is  their  religious  faith  yet 
wh.le  worsh,pp.ng  with  their  heart,,,  the  devout  cannot  'help 
stealmg  with  their  hands  P 

.nfroV     ^  '  ""^^  ^  ™"Vromise  when  Christianity  v^as 

than  a  white  figure.      In   one  of  the  finest  churches  in   the 
C   ri;t   "  H        t'    ^'^'  ""f"""'   ^"PP°"^  ^  dark-coloured 
wh.ch   m  all   my  travels  I  had   never  seen  before,  namelv 
an    ordmary-s,zed   wooden    bedstead,   with   sheet     blanke  ^ 
and  pdows  edged  with  lace,  standing  in  the  Churih      Or 

marlsl'f  b,'",   ^""  °' P"^''  ""''''  '""^    Crucifixion,    fo 
marks  of  blood  were  on  the  forehead.     Several  worshipners 
were  n,   the  Church,  and  four  of  them  devoutly  kSed'the 


226  MEXICO  AS     I  SAW   IT. 

feet  of  this  remarkable  figure,  which  peeped  out  beneath  the 
bed-clothing,  and,  strange  to  say,  although  the  face  of  Christ 
was  white,  the  feet  were  black,  perhaps  to  conciliate  the 
two  races. 

At  Easter  this  gruesome-looking  doll  plays  an  important 
part  in  the  Church  ceremonial.  It  was  terrible.  Had 
the  figure  been  artistic,  the  drapery  beautiful,  had  it  ap- 
pealed to  the  best  in  one's  nature,  then  kissing  a  block  of 
wood  might  have  seemed  less  dreadful  ;  but  such  a  model, 
life-size,  yet  so  unlifelike,  those  common  sheets  and  cheap 
laces,  and,  above  all,  the  hideous  print  coverlet,  appalled 
me.  The  idea  of  the  modern  bed  was  ridiculous,  but  the 
homage  paid  to  such  an  idol — for  it  was  nothing  more  nor  less 
— carried  me  away  from  Christianity  to  Eastern  heathenism. 

Hard  by  the  examination  room  of  the  Preparatory  Schools 
and  University,  where  hundreds  of  boys  are  educated  free  of 
charge,  are  some  exquisitely-carved  stalls  in  cedar  wood  (it 
was  formerly  an  old  Jesuit  Monastery)  ;  they  are  wonderful. 

Education  in  Mexico  is  practically  free  ;  including 
classes  for  instruction  in  the  arts  and  trades,  there  are  in 
the  Republic  10,746  Government  schools,  with  an  aver- 
age attendance  of  545,000.  Primary  education  is  compul- 
sory. There  are  also  many  private  schools  and  colleges. 
In  the  City  the  Federal  Government  maintains  the  follow- 
ing institutions  : — Academy  of  Fine  Arts,  School  of  Civil 
Engineering,  School  of  Medicine,  Law  School,  Academy 
of  Commerce,  Academy  of  Arts  and  Trades,  Conservatory 
of  Music,  Military  College,  School  of  Mines,  two  Normal 
Schools  for  teachers  of  both  sexes,  also  schools  for  the 
deaf,  dumb,  and  blind.  In  the  various  States  are  similar 
institutions  supported  by  the  States'  governments.  Mexico 
annually  expends  five  million  dollars  for  the  education  of 
her  people. 

There   are   seventy-two  public    libraries    in    the    country. 
The    National   Library    at    the     Capital    contains    265,000 


ODDS   AND   ENDS.  227 

volumes.  At  the  present  time  Mexico  issues  more  than  360 
periodical  publications,  including  the  daily  and  weekly  news- 
papers, besides  magazines,  literary  reviews  and  organs  of 
various  industries  and  interests. 

Side  by  side  with  advanced  civilisation  is  barbarism.  At 
the  breakfast  table  every  morning  one  finds  the  "  Mexican 
Herald,"  printed  in  the  English  language.  It  is  an  excel- 
lent paper,  with  all  the  Associated  Press  telegrams,  which 
have  to  travel  over  a  thousand  miles  by  special  wire  for  the 
benefit  of  the  readers  of  this  enterprising  "  Daily."  Here  is 
the  latest  news,  published  almost  as  soon  as  it  is  in  London 
or  New  York,  and  yet,  though  the  editors  are  English  and 
American,  the  compositors  are  all  Mexican  Indians,  not  one 
of  whom  knows  a  single  word  of  the  language  he  is  setting 
up !  He  does  it  word  by  word  from  type-written  MS., 
and  really  the  "readers"  are  so  careful  that  there  is  seldom 
a  wrongly-spelt  word  in  this  hurriedly-put-together  daily 
paper.  President  Diaz  told  me  he  had  the  telegrams 
translated  for  him  every  day  !  So  the  President  is  ever  in 
touch  with  the  world's  news. 

Mr,  Paul  Hudson,  the  manager,  is  a  most  enthusiastic 
scholar  of  Mexican  manners  and  customs,  who  has  edited  an 
excellent  guide.  Mr,  L.  C.  Simonds,  an  Englishman  by 
birth,  writes  the  English  and  political  articles,  and  Mr. 
E,  M.  Conley,  formerly  on  the  staff  of  the  "  New  York 
Sun,"  undertakes  the  archseoloo-v.  It  is  a  wonderful  little 
paper,  and  to  its  contributors  I  am  indebted  for  much 
useful  information  and  help 


15* 


228 


CHAPTER    XIV. 

THE      NEW      CENTURY. 

On  the  last  day  of  the  nineteenth  century,  as  I  sat  writing 
far,  far  from  home,  and  right  up  in  the  clouds,  so  to  speak, 
such  is  the  altitude  of  Mexico  City,  my  thoughts  naturally 
turned  to  the  new  era  so  soon  to  dawn. 

The  position  of  nations  in  this  world's  history  changes 
with  the  centuries.  Each  in  turn  seems  to  mount  the 
rungs  of  the  ladder,  to  reach  the  summit  of  power,  and 
then  gradually  topples  over.  That  great  Eastern  civilisa- 
tion of  thousands  of  years  ago  in  China,  where  is  it  now  ? 
Multiplied  in  numbers,  deteriorated  in  force,  dwindled  in 
power. 

Germany  and  the  United  States  have  marched  boldly 
forward  during  this  rapidly-expiring  nineteen  hundred. 
France  has  slowly  and  surely  stepped  back,  England 
is  being  jostled  by  America,  and  if  she  do  not  wake 
from  her  lethargy  will  speedily  find  the  younger  country 
outstripping  her  in  every  race,  as  she  has  already  done  in 
so  many.  Let  our  manufacturers  go  over  to  the  States 
and  see  how  machinery  is  made  by  machinery,  and  when 
completed  how  that  machinery  is  again  worked  almost 
entirely  by  machinery.  They  will  then  learn  how  to 
vastly  increase  the  output  of  work  and  decrease  the 
labour  enormously.  This  means  multiplied  business, 
cheapness  and  success.  Trade  Unions  paralyze  England, 
and,  in  spite  of  her  present  success,  "trusts"  bid  fair  to 
ruin  America,  but  in  the  meantime  she  flourishes. 


Jockey  Club  Patio,  Mexico  City. 


[  To  face  page  228. 


THE  NEW  CENTURY.  229 

What  will  the  new  century  vouchsafe  ?  Will  Mexico 
take  her  place  among  the  prominent  nations  of  the  world  ? 
Should  another  Juarez  or  a  second  Diaz  arise  she  will 
undoubtedly  do  so,  and  why  should  not  such  men  grow 
from  the  children  now  playing  at  marbles  on  her  vast 
territories  ? 

Mexico  has  wondrous  possibilities.  In  her  mineral 
wealth,  and  agricultural  produce,  she  possesses  much  to 
make  her  great.  She  is  vast  in  size,  and  thinly  populated  ; 
her  past  is  romantic,  and  the  future  lies  before  her  like  the 
blank  pages  of  a  book  on  which  she  may  take  up  her  pencil 
and  write  what  she  pleases.  Who  can  foretell  the  future  .'' 
Perhaps  in  a  hundred  years  Mexico's  may  be  one  of  the 
voices  that  rule  the  world. 

That  wonderful  new  harbour  at  Vera  Cruz,  the  Tampico 
port,  this  railway  across  the  Isthmus  of  Tehuantepec,  the 
various  routes  projected  to  the  Pacific  Coast,  all,  all  are 
combining  to  help  forward  the  development  of  the  land  of 
Montezuma. 

The  more  one  sees  of  Mexico,  the  more  one  realises 
what  a  marvellous  country  it  is.  Its  climate  varies  from 
tropical  heat  to  almost  Arctic  cold  ;  every  fruit,  vegetable 
and  flower  appears  to  grow  upon  its  soil ;  its  mineral  wealth 
is  still  unknown  ;  nevertheless,  after  nearly  six  months 
spent  in  the  land,  under  the  most  favourable  circumstances 
that  could  possibly  fall  to  the  lot  of  woman,  I  feel  con- 
vinced of  two  things.  First,  that  it  is  not  yet  the  place  to 
which  an  ordinarv  Enojish  labourer  should  emio^rate  with 
his  family  ;  wages  are  too  low,  in  spite  of  there  never  being 
a  sufficient  supply  of  men  for  the  demand. 

Secondly,  that  it  is  a  good  field  for  the  accomplished 
artisan,  provided  he  will  first  work  in  some  minor  position 
in  which  he  can  learn  the  language  and  customs  of  the 
country,  before  taking  thither  his  wife  and  children. 
French    chefs,     English    coachmen    and     butlers,    Eno-Hsh 


230  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

nursery-maids,  find  employment  readily  at  good  wages  ; 
while  from  end  to  end  of  the  Republic  drivers,  guards 
and  brakemen  are  nearly  always  English-speaking  men. 

Turning^  to  the  better-class  folk,  I  ouQ-ht  to  mention 
Mexico  is  not  the  place  for  a  weak  boy  inclined  to  drink 
or  play  cards.  The  country  and  climate  would  simply  spell 
damnation  for  him  ;  but  for  any  lad  with  a  good  business 
head  and  some  training  there  are  endless  openings. 

At  the  same  time  I  have  met  sad  instances  of  inexperienced 
youths  landing  with  a  few  hundred  pounds,  who,  hoping  to 
achieve  immediate  fortune,  had  been  duped  and  their  money 
lost.  Hn  fact,  for  any  one  to  invest  anything  in  Mexico  until 
he  really  knows  something  of  the  country  and  its  manners 
and  customs,  can  but  be  considered  sheer  madness^ 

There  are  endless  sources  of  development,  and  the 
Government  is  doing  all  it  can  to  help.  Shops  kept  by 
foreigners  seem  to  answer  well,  in  spite  of  the  enormous  duties 
exacted.  Practically  everything  is  imported — china,  glass, 
clothes,  wine,  tinned  foods,  drugs,  etc.,  for  the  reason  that  until 
lately  there  have  been  no  home  manufactories.  At  the  present 
time  cotton,  however,  is  being  spun  and  made  into  shirting; 
bricks  are  burnt,  and  here  and  there  each  trade  is  finding 
a  pioneer  representative;  although  agriculture  and  mining  will 
naturally  remain  the  chief  industries  of  Mexico.  There 
is,  however,  yet  another  possibility,  for  the  fuel  oil  fields 
known  to  exist  have  not  yet  been  exploited. 

Fuel  is  one  of  the  greatest  wants  of  Mexico  ;  only 
latterly  has  a  small  quantity  of  coal  been  found.  The 
forests  are  chiefly  cabinet  wood,  and  by  their  rapid  destruc- 
tion much  harm  has  been  done.  The  exports  of  cabinet 
wood  in  1898  amounted  to  ^176,993  ;  in  1899,  ^201,886. 
This  is  all  right,  but  to  burn  these  precious  woods  is  a 
shame.  For  example,  in  the  time  of  Cortes,  the  valley  of 
Mexico  was  warm  and  fertile,  and  the  conqueror  acquired 
a  sugar    plantation    of  great  value,  which   he    bequeathed 


THE   NEW  CENTURY.  231 

in  his  will.  The  climate  has  changed  since  the  destruction 
of  the  forests  ;  it  has  become  colder  and  dryer.  The  hills 
now  are  bleak  and  bare,  sugar  will  not  grow  for  miles 
further  south,  and  the  cold  of  Mexico  Valley  is  extending 
over  the  Republic  wherever  trees  are  being  indiscriminately 
cut  down. 

Mexico  possesses  everything  but  cheap  fuel ;  once  pro- 
vided with  that,  which  she  may  be  ere  long  if  the  oil 
fields  are  worked,  she  will  become  a  manufacturing  country. 

There  are  many  rich  people,  millionaires  in  fact,  who  live 
in  veritable  palaces.  The  homes  of  the  two  Escandon 
families,  situated  on  each  side  of  the  Jockey  Club,  are 
simply  splendid  ;  patio  after  patio,  stabling  for  twenty  or 
thirty  horses  downstairs,  suites  and  suites  of  apartments ! 
The  numbers  of  servants  kept  by  these  old  Mexican  families 
is  surprising,  forty  or  fifty  for  one  household  !  Many  of  these 
servants  have  been  in  the  family  all  their  lives,  and  their 
parents  before  them  ;p^ut  the  Mexican  servant,  though 
faithful,  is  lazy,  and  two  only  get  through  the  same  amount 
of  work  as  one  ordinary  European.  ^ 

The  country  houses  also  are^  wonderful  —  often  old 
monasteries  changed  into  sumptuous  mansions.  They 
contain  corridors,  patios  and  cloisters  in  abundance,  and 
such  flowers !  Hardly  in  gardens,  for  the  lovely  blooms 
practically  grow  wild,  only  the  grass  borders,  lawns  and 
roadways  requiring  attention.  Southern  Mexico  is  indeed 
the  land  of  flowers,  but,  alas !  they  perish  in  a  night. 

"  You  pluck  the  flower,  the  bloom  has  fled." 

Armfuls  of  gorgeous  roses,  huge  bouquets  of  wonderful 
flowers  are  an  everyday  sight  ;  but  they  have  little  scent, 
and  die  in  their  vases  ere  morning.  Exquisite  masses  of 
colour,  wondrously  brilliant  blossoms,  but  almost  all  without 
perfume  and  strangely  perishable. 

The    people    loved    and    tended    their    flowers    in    their 


232 


MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 


floating  gardens  in  the  days  of  Cortes,  and  now,  five  hun- 
dred years  later,  they  are  doing  precisely  the  same  thing. 

The  New  Year  is  a  special  festival  in  Mexico,  and  a 
day  for  the  exchange  of  cards  and  flowers.  I  was 
particularly  fortunate,  and  among  other  kind  presents 
received  a  bouquet  of  the  most  exquisite  "  American 
Beauty  "  roses  from  the  President  and  Madame  Diaz. 
Below  are  the  cards  which  accompanied  it. 


Porfirio  Diaz,  that  was  all,  no  "President,"  no 
"  General,"  nothing  but  those  words,  Porfirio  Diaz.  Could 
anything  be  more  simple,  more  unassuming,  more  cha- 
racteristic of  the  man  himself  ? 

During  the  last  hours  of  its  life,  the  bells  of  the 
City  tolled  a  sort  of  melancholy  wail  for  the  old  year  and 
departing  century.  At  midnight  I  attended  Grand  Mass 
in    the  Cathedral.      It  was  an  imposing  ceremony  from  its 


THE  NEW  CENTURY.  233 

strange  contrasts.  The  Cathedral  is  a  fine  structure, 
standing  where  the  old  Aztec  Temple  stood  hundreds 
of  years  ago,  and  that  night  it  was  crowded.  Some 
of  the  richest  and  grandest  folk  in  the  land  were  there, 
ready  to  receive  Holy  Communion  after  the  elevation  of 
the  Host,  together  with  some  of  the  very  poorest,  and,  oh 
dear !  they  can  be  poor  in  Mexico  City  !  As  we  entered 
dust  and  incense  caused  the  place  to  look  as  though  filled 
with  fog  ;  a  sort  of  weird  mystery  pervaded  the  whole 
scene.  In  front  on  a  red  velvet  cloth  lay  a  massive  wooden 
cross,  probably  twelve  feet  long  ;  at  its  foot  was  a  silver 
tray  to  receive  alms,  and  all  round  were  ranged  enormous 
lighted  candles.  Thousands  of  persons  passed  before  that 
cross  on  the  last  night  of  the  nineteenth  century,  and 
kissed  the  wood  of  which  it  was  made.  It  reminded  me 
of  that  long  line  of  worshippers  on  Easter  Sunday  who 
filed  past  to  kiss  St.  Peter's  toe  in  the  Church  of  that 
name  in  Rome.  We  were  thousands  of  miles  away  from 
Rome,  yet  here  was  a  similar  ceremony  enacted  by  others 
of  the  Catholic  faith. 

In  the  middle  of  the  Cathedral  only  were  there  any  seats, 
and  the  people  therefore  knelt  on  the  floor,  while  many 
prayed  with  outstretched  arms,  or  huddled  into  corners 
against  the  great  stone  pillars.  Dozens  of  dogs  and  hun- 
dreds of  babies  were  in  evidence. 

Two  scenes  impressed  me  greatly.  One  was  a  group  of 
very  poor  Indian  women,  dressed  in  their  two  simple  gar- 
ments, arms  and  neck  bare,  yet  among  them  they  had 
bought  a  candle !  At  the  rear  of  the  Church,  where  it  was 
darkest,  this  little  group  of  five  was  kneeling.  One  held 
the  candle,  which  lighted  their  features ;  another  a  book  from 
which  she  read  her  prayers,  repeated  by  the  others,  who  in 
all  probability  could  not  read  themselves.  Two  of  this 
party  had  babies  tied  to  their  backs,  one  of  whom  was  asleep 
with  its  little  head  hano-inQ-  down  at  the  side  till  it  almost 


234  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

touched  its  small  feet.  The  other  baby  cried  at  intervals, 
but  its  mother  had  come  to  pray,  and  had  no  time  to  soothe 
the  infant,  so  by  way  of  stopping  its  wail  she  gave  the  tiny 
creature  a  sort  of  hitch-up  every  now  and  then,  accom- 
panying the  jerk  with  some  remark.  The  last  of  that 
devout  little  group  had  a  collie  dog,  which  sniffed  around 
from  one  to  another,  and  as  it  did  not  seem  inclined  to  settle 
down,  the  women  patted  and  let  it  through  into  the  middle 
of  their  little  circle.  There  for  an  hour  they  prayed — that 
ring  of  five  women,  two  babies  and  a  clog,  illumined  by  a 
solitary  candle.  What  a  group  !  What  a  picture  !  How 
delightful  to  witness  their  honest  faith.  Yet  there  was 
another  side  to  it  all,  for  my  friend  had  a  beautiful  pearl  pin 
stolen  from  his  scarf  while  we  stood  watching  that  group ! 

The  other  worshipper  who  particularly  interested  me 
was  an  old  man.  He  looked  rich  and  prosperous,  and 
selected  a  quiet  spot  for  prayer  near  the  choir  stalls.  He 
had  invested  in  quite  a  number  of  candles,  which  burned 
in  a  row  before  him,  while  to  my  certain  knowledge  he 
prayed  with  both  hands  extended  for  over  half  an  hour. 
He  was  old,  and  his  arms  must  have  ached,  yet  he  prayed 
on,  happy  in  the  belief  that  the  purchase  of  candles  and  the 
penance  he  was  performing  would  bring  him  nearer  to  his 
God.      Happy  old  man  ! 

He  was  only  one  of  hundreds  of  devout  worshippers,  for 
had  not  the  Pope  bidden  every  Catholic  open  the  new 
century  with  prayer  ? 

Official  instructions  had  been  received  from  Rome  de- 
tailing how  Roman  Catholics  were  to  observe  the  cere- 
monial of  the  closing  of  the  year  and  the  century  on  the 
night  of  December  31st.  The  decree  from  the  Pope  was 
addressed  to  all  the  world. 


"Now  that  the  present  age  is  drawing  to  a  close,"  it  ];egan,  "  and  a  new  one  is  about 
to  begin,  it  is  highly  proper  that  all  who  have  been  redeemed  by  Him  in  every  part  of 
the  world  should  be  solemnly  consecrated  to  the  King  of  Ages,  Jesus  Christ,  in  order 


THE   NEW  CENTURY.  235 

that  thus  gratitude  may  be  shown  for  the  special  favours  from  Him  in  the  past.  What 
our  holy  father  granted  a  year  ago  by  anticipation  he  also  permits  by  the  same  decrees  of 
the  sacred  congregation  of  rites,  viz.  :  That  at  midnight,  which  ushers  in  the  first  of 
January  of  the  year  1901,  the  most  august  sacrament  of  the  Eucharist  may  be  exposed 
for  adoration  in  churches  and  chapels,  and  that  in  its  presence  one  mass  for  the  feast  of 
the  circumcision  of  our  Lord  and  the  octave  of  the  nativity  may  be  read  or  sung,  and 
that,  moreover,  the  faithful  by  special  privilege  may  receive  holy  communion  either 
during  or  outside  of  the  mass.  While  thinking  of  some  new  means  of  increasing  the 
piety  of  the  faithful  in  connection  with  an  event  so  solemn,  the  holy  father  learned  that 
many  prelates  and  pious  sodalities  anxiously  desire  that  the  faithful  of  Christ,  moved  by 
an  eagerness  to  participate  in  the  rich  treasury  of  spiritual  indulgences,  should  every- 
where be  invited  to  come  and  adore  the  most  blessed  Eucharist.  As  this  was  in  most 
perfect  accord  with  his  own  wishes  the  holy  father  has  benignly  granted  that  a  plenary 
indulgence  may  be  gained  to  all  the  faithful  of  Christ  who,  having  properly  approached 
the  sacraments  of  penance  and  received  holy  communion  in  a  church  or  chapel  where  the 
most  holy  Eucharist  is  reserved,  shall  spend  any  full  hour  they  please  between  midnight 
of  December  31  and  the  noon  of  January  i,  before  the  most  august  sacrament  exposed 
to  public  adoration,  and  shall,  moreover,  oft'er  pious  prayers  to  God  for  the  intentions  of 
his  holiness." 

It  was  a  most  impressive  service,  yet  very  sad.  The 
black  dresses  of  the  ladies,  the  mantillas,  the  weird  mystery 
of  haze  caused  by  the  incense  of  copal  gum,  the  wail  of  chil- 
dren, the  mournful  music,  everything  tended  towards  depres- 
sion, despite  the  gorgeous  robes  of  the  priests  and  the  glitter 
of  candles.  For  me  the  new  century  dawned  amid  the  most 
picturesque  surroundings,  with  a  friend  of  my  childhood 
beside  me  ;  but  everything  seemed  strangely  sad. 

As  the  clock  struck  twelve  the  bells  rang  out ;  but 
somehow  they  were  not  joyous  bells  that  ushered  in  the 
new  century.  There  was  something  most  depressing  in 
their  tone.  The  organ  did  not  peal  forth  in  glorious 
exultancy,  but  a  piano  and  a  dozen  acolytes'  voices  per- 
formed a  strano-e  diroe  or  chant.  It  was  sad,  but  not 
imposing  ;  dull,  but  not  inspiring.  Holy  Communion 
followed,  and  we  emerged  about  1.30  a.m.  into  the 
bright,  crisp  wintry  air,  to  walk  home  beneath  an  almost 
blue-black  sky,  in  which  the  moon  was  shining  clearly, 
and,  oh,  so  far  away  that  same  moon  had  been  shining  on 
dear  ones  at  home  but  five  hours  previously,  and  passed  on 
with  England's  dawn  from  them  to  us. 


236  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

What  a  century  the  nineteenth  had  been  ;  the  "  science" 
century  surely.  During  those  hundred  years  what  wonders 
had  been  discovered  !  Railways,  telegraphs,  telephones, 
electric  light,  traction  and  motor  cars,  phonographs,  wireless 
telegraphy  and  Rontgen  rays !  Why  these  things  alone 
have  revolutionised  the  world. 

We  had  seen  the  twentieth  century  dawn  ;  we  should 
not  see  it  die.  What  wonderful  thino-s,  what  marvellous 
inventions  and  discoveries  may  not  this  century  give  birth 
to  }  What  will  happen  in  Mexico  ?  Ah,  if  we  could  only 
lift  the  veil  of  the  future  and  peep  behind  ! 

My  last  night  of  the  old  century  was  passed  amid 
Indians  and  incense,  in  the  strange  gloom  of  an  old  Spanish 
Cathedral.  The  first  evening  of  the  new  era  was  spent 
amongst  wealth  and  jewels,  aristocracy  and  laughter. 

Probably  the  most  ^beautiful  building  in  Mexico  City, 
with  the  exception  of  the  churches,  is  the  "  Jockey  Club." 
It  is  an  old  palace  dating  from  the  sixteenth  century,  built  of 
those  wonderful  Puebla  tiles,  which  evoke  such  admiration, 
and  which  modern  machinery  cannot  copy.  They  are  slightly 
irregular  and  bulge  in  the  centre,  the  yellows  and  blues  are 
beautiful  shades,  and  fill  the  artistic  mind  with  enthusiasm. 
The  Jockey  Club  has  a  lovely  patio,  with  palms  and  plants, 
containing  a  charming  old  fountain,  typical  of  the  ancient 
Moorish  style  of  Spain.  It  is  the  Club  of  the  town,  the 
home  of  light  and  learning,  and  undeniably  the  haunt  of 
vice.  I  use  the  word  "  vice  "  deliberately,  for  the  nightly 
play  is  very  high,  especially  in  the  baccarat  room.  Till  five 
and  six  o'clock  every  morning  men  are  losing  or  winning 
large  sums  of  money.  Gambling  is  the  curse  of  Mexico, 
alike  among  rich  and  poor.  I  have  actually  seen  children 
of  five  and  six  years  of  age  bringing  their  farthings  to 
gamble  in  the  market  place.  Yes,  I  emphatically  repeat 
gambling  is  the  curse  of  Mexico. 

Look   at   the  grand   Jockey  Club  and   its   baccarat  table, 


THE   NEW  CENTURY.  237 

where  play  continues  every  night  till  the  small  hours  of 
the  morning.  Look  at  the  religious  feast  of  Guadalupe  with 
its  pilgrims,  who  pray  on  one  side  and  gamble  away  their 
last  cents  on  the  other,  and  then  pawn  their  blankets  or 
hats  in  order  to  obtain  more  to  fling  away  in  like  manner. 
Look  at  the  licensed  gambling  hells  in  every  town,  controlled 
by  a  ring  of  rich  men,  fast  growing  still  more  wealthy.  Go 
into  one  or  two  in  Mexico  Citv,  and  see  the  tables  o-roaninQ- 
under  the  weight  of  silver  dollars.  One  thousand  pounds  in 
silver  is  upon  each  of  those  tables,  and  more  in  the  bank 
if  needed.  Men  and,  alas,  sometimes  women,  with  their 
books  and  their  systems,  will  sit  there  all  night,  only  rising 
after  a  turn  of  ill-luck  to  partake  of  the  supper  which  is  pro- 
vided free.  Champagne  and  French  cooking  gratis,  add 
another  inducement  to  play,  and  yet  the  visitors  do  not  see 
how  heavily  the  tables  must  win  to  make  such  gifts  possible. 

Yes,  in  those  dens  anyone  may  have  his  champagne  of 
the  best  without  charge  ;  indeed,  he  is  encouraged  to  take 
it,  because  after  a  few  glasses  the  world  looks  different. 
Luck  must  and  will  chano-e  the  o-ambler  thinks,  and  feelinof 
refreshed  and  more  hopeful,  a  regular  dare-devil  in  fact,  he 
returns  to  the  tables  to  risk  his  all  in  another  flirtation 
with  Dame  Fortune. 

He  loses.  No  matter,  he  must  not  pawn  his  things  in 
the  rooms,  the  law  forbids  that  ;  but  if  he  have  played  in  one 
of  the  gambling  halls  outside  the  City  he  is  given  a  free 
ticket  home  aQ-ain  !     These  tickets  are  claimed  nio-htlv. 

The  gambling  tables  are  the  property  of,  or  licensed  by, 
the  State,  and  large  revenues  are  annually  received  from 
them. 

At  any  street  corner  an  old  man  or  woman,  a  lame  man 
or  a  child,  will  offer  you  lottery  tickets  for  sale.  They 
form  one  of  the  institutions  of  Mexico  ;  indeed,  on  every 
side  the  cry  of  the  lottery  ticket  seller  is  heard. 

The   great   Government    Lottery,    held   twice   a   year,   is 


238 


MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT 


drawn   on    May   5th    and    December   31st.       The  value    is 
50,000  dollars,  and  a  whole  ticket  costs  ten  dollars. 


Then  there  is  the  Public  Benefit  Lottery.  A  whole 
ticket  costs  four  dollars,  and  is  drawn  once  a  month  for 
60,000  dollars.  A  two-dollar  ticket  for  10,000  dollars  is 
drawn  twice  a  month,  or  a  twenty-five  cent  Mex,  -=  (six- 
pence) for  600  dollars  is  drawn  every  week,  and  this  ticket 
can  be  divided  into  halfpenny  parts,  and  with  these  the 
poorest  try  their  luck.  The  white  tickets  are  five  cents 
each. 


THE   NEW  CENTURY. 


239 


LOTERIA  DE  LA  BENEFICENCIA  PlBLiCA^ 

«    MEXICO      9-  = 


y^)ficy?c>?c>'xyoro''xy'0'xyxy'C^xT<yxyv)ncyxy^ 


Sorteo 

1064  \Oq 


o 

verificara  en  el  Pabelldn  Morlsco  de  la  Alameda   \ 
de  esta  Cludad,  el  dia 

DIEZ  y  8IETE  de  ElJifi^O  de  1001 


nt*rv»fi«or  yf     "  /•/ 

— '/A''' 


These  tickets  are  drawn  in  a  kiosk  in  the  chief  garden  of 
Mexico  City,  namely,  the  Alameda,  So  wherever  one 
goes,    lotteries   and   gambling   meet  the  eye  and  ear. 

The  Jockey  Club  Ball  proved  an  enormous  success.  It 
was  given  by  the  members  of  the  Club  to  Carmen  Romero 
Rubio  de  Diaz,  known  to  all  Mexico  as  Carinelita,  in 
commemoration  of  her  husband's  re-election  for  the  sixth 
time  to  the  Presidency  of  Mexico. 

The  invitations  were  for  ten  o'clock,  and  when  we 
reached  the  blue-tiled  mansion,  a  few  minutes  after  that 
hour,  everyone  was  already  there.  The  house  with  its 
quaint  Puebla  tiles  looked  lovely.  In  the  patio  a  military 
band  was  playing  among  the  palms.  The  staircase  was 
decorated  and  everything  was  done  to  pay  honour  to  the 
wife  of  the  President. 

The  Mayor  gave  me  his  arm,  conducted  me  into  one 
of  the  long  suites  of  rooms,  and  solemnly  placed  me  next 
to  Madame  Rincon,  Madame  Limantour,  Madame  Braniff, 
and  others  whom  I  knew.  Then  he  departed.  I  looked 
round.  Both  sides  of  that  drawing-room,  and  the  two 
succeeding  drawing-rooms,  were  lined  with   women  !       Not 


240  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

one  single  man  was  to  be  seen.  Each  male  person  brought 
a  lady,  deposited  her  on  a  seat,  and  fled  !  Two  hundred 
and  fifty  men  waited  in  the  gallery  outside,  whilst  two  hun- 
dred and  fifty  women  sat  gravely  lining  the  rooms  inside  ! 

What  good-looking  women  they  were,  too !  Such  faces, 
figures,  jewels  and  dresses  would  have  done  credit  to  Buck- 
ingham Palace  !  The  ladies  of  the  older  Spanish  families 
wore  most  wonderful  pearls  and  diamonds,  precious  stones 
that  had  been  in  their  families  for  hundreds  of  years,  but 
the  girls  had  no  jewels  of  any  kind.  Both  men  and  women 
appeared  small.  They  are  descendants  of  the  old  Spanish 
settlers  ;  the  women  average  about  five  feet  two  inches,  and 
the  men  five  feet  seven  inches  (my  own  height),  so  that  I 
always  felt  gigantic  at  such  gatherings. 

Punctually  at  10.30  the  band  struck  up  the  National 
Anthem,  Himno  Nacional — which  resembles  the  Mar- 
seillaise, and  is  only  played  for  the  President  himself, 
except  on  national  feast  days — and  then  General  and 
Madame  Diaz  ascended  the  stairs.  Madame  Diaz  entered 
the  room  first,  on  the  arm  of  Senor  Limantour,  Minister  of 
Finance,  and  the  President  followed  with  Madame  Braniff 
Everyone  rose  and  bowed,  no  one  curtsied,  however, 
as  with  gracious  smiles  the  Presidential  party,  followed 
by  the  Mexican  Ministers  and  the  Club  Committee,  filed  in. 
Madame  Diaz  took  up  her  position  before  the  sofa,  and 
various  ladies  approached  in  turn  to  say  "  How  do  you 
do  V  to  her.     When  my  turn  came,  I  laughingly  said  : 

"  I  am  very  fortunate,  Madame,  in  that  you  are  having 
this  ball  while  I  am  here,  for  it  is  a  lovely  sight." 

"We  are  fortunate  in  having  you  at  our  ball,  and  I  hope 
it  will  fill  your  mind  with  pleasant  recollections."  This  in 
English,  and  said  with  the  most  perfect  grace  and  charm. 
Madame  Diaz  looked  lovely  that  night  in  pale  green  silk 
with  exquisite  lace,  and  ropes  of  pearls  hanging  about  her 
neck.      To  Mexico  she  is  what  the  Empress  Eugenie  was  to 


THE   NEW  CENTURY.  241 

France,  a  beautiful  and  clever  woman,  dignified  in  manner, 
and  stylish  in  appearance.  She  is  many  years  younger 
than  her  husband,  and  supplies  all  the  graciousness  which 
so  fittingly  accompanies  his  rugged  strength. 

General  Diaz  is  not  a  Society  man,  but  he  did  his  duties 
that  night  as  if  he  liked  them.  All  the  Ambassadors  wore 
their  Orders,  the  General  none  !  After  standing  a  few 
minutes  beside  his  consort,  the  order  for  dancing  was 
given,  and  away  whirled  the  giddy  throng.  The  President 
then  went  round  to  have  a  chat  with  his  friends,  and 
for  a  couple  of  hours,  until  supper  was  announced,  he 
walked  about  talking  affably  to  everyone.  He  was  most 
gracious,  hoped  I  was  having  a  good  time,  and  regretted 
he  had  not  sent  the  promised  photographs.  He  had  not 
forgotten  them,  and  had  written  to  various  Governors 
whose  States  I  intended  visiting  later  on,  to  ask  them  to 
look  after  me.  This  thoughtfulness  from  the  unap- 
proachable Diaz  ! 

The  ball  was  on  New  Year's  Day,  and  hearing  it  was 
proper  to  visit  Madame  Diaz  that  same  afternoon  to  wish 
her  a  happy  twelvemonth,  and  on  this  occasion  a  happy 
century,  I  had  ventured  to  call,  and  at  the  same  time  took  the 
opportunity  of  thanking  her  for  the  exquisite  bouquet  of 
roses  which  she  and  President  Diaz  had  sent  me  the 
previous  night.  Several  of  the  Diplomatic  Corps  were 
there  ;  but  when  I  left  she  herself  accompanied  me  to  the 
top  of  the  staircase. 

"  I  want  to  tell  you,"  she  said,  "  that  I  have  read  your 
Father's  Memoirs.  The  President  liked  the  stories  I  told 
him  at  dinner,  especially  the  Crimean  incident."  After  more 
charming  references,  and  a  kindly  handshake,  I  left. 

The  Diaz  house  in  Cadena  is  by  no  means  the  finest  in 
Mexico,  far  from  it,  the  beautiful  homes  of  the  Escandons 
and  a  dozen  others  are  finer,  but  then  Diaz  is  not  a  rich 
man,  and   his   town   house   is   his  private  residence. 

16 


242  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

On  entering  the  patio  the  same  performance  was  repeated 
as  on  my  first  visit.  One  is  ushered  up  the  marble  stair- 
case ;  at  the  top  a  footman  wearing  white  gloves  and 
English  livery  is  waiting  to  send  one  on  to  the  next  man, 
standing;  at  the  hall  door.  He  bows  one  into  the  drawino- 
room,  but  does  not  ask  the  name,  and  visitors  simply  walk 
in  unannounced.  Of  course  the  hall-porter  below  knows 
whom  to  admit,  and  once  his  sacred  barrier  is  passed  all 
is  clear  sailing,  and  the  most  cordial  welcome  vouchsafed. 
Madame  Diaz  has  no  receiving  day  ;  but  New  Year's  Day 
was  a  special  occasion.  The  General  had  held  his  public 
receptions  at  the  Municipal  Palace  in  the  morning.  Hers 
were  merely  friendly  visits. 

What  a  happy  home  life  that  must  be,  when  the  door  is 
shut  on  official  business  ! 


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243 


CHAPTER     XV. 

GUADALAJARA. 

The  new  century  had  dawned.  My  travels  into  the 
further  unknown  were  to  begin.  What  experiences  some 
of  those  travels  proved  ! 

Guadalajara  is  perhaps  one   of  the   quaintest   old   towns 

in  Mexico.      It  has  its  history,  what  town  has  not  ?     Battles 

fnave  been  fought   and  blood   has   been   shed   in    its   valley, 

but   to-day   modern   civilisation   is   struggling    with    ancient 

barbarism  in  this  interesting  land  of  grand  contrasts.! 

What  a  pretty  name — Gua-da-la-ha-ra — rich  and  musical, 
as  are  so  many  native  names.  As  the  nomenclature  of 
Mexico  is  poetical  and  melodious,  so  the  people  are  artistic 
and  romantic.  All  the  charm  of  a  southern  clime  is  to  be 
found;  at  one  moment  the  scene  might  almost  be  in  Italy,  at 
the  next  the  Spanish  Pyrenees  recur  to  mind,  and  then  again 
dear  dirty  Tangier  appears  before  us.  The  mules,  the 
burros  (donkeys)  with  their  pack-loads,  the  blue  cloudless 
sky,  the  dark  skins  of  the  Mexican  Indians,  the  white  cotton 
clothes  and  bright-coloured  blankets — all  these  we  have  seen 
in  other  lands.  Mexico  recalls  a  hundred  different  scenes  ; 
even  the  domes  of  many  of  the  churches  with  their  gold  tops 
and  coloured  tiles  are  reminiscent  of  far-away  Russia,  It  is 
all  very  interesting,  and  strange  combinations  abound  ; 
barbed  wire,  electric  light,  telegraphs,  sewing-machines,  and  a 
telephone  may  be  found  in  a  little  village  where  the  term 
'^  savage  barbarism"  would  hardly  sound  out  of  place. 

1 6* 


^ 


244  MEXICO  AS   I  SA  IV  IT. 

As  diversified  as  the  country  are  the  friends  one 
encounters  whom  one  has  known  in  other  lands. 

In  the  spring  of  1900,  in  England,  I  was  spending  a  few 
days  with  the  Robert  Flemings  at  Chislehurst,  when  a  nice, 
grey-haired  American  arrived  upon  the  scene.  We  chatted 
over  dinner,  and  I  mentioned  Mexico,  and  my  intention  of 
travelling  thither  during  the  following  autumn. 

"  How  strange,"  he  remarked  ;  "because  I  have  a  good 
deal  to  do  with  that  country,  in  fact,  I  am  the  Chairman  of 
the  Mexican  Central  Railway."  Thus  by  a  strange  accident 
I  met  Mr.  A.  A.  Robinson,  who  subsequently  proved  a 
friend  in  that  far-away  continent.  Little  did  I  then  guess 
what  a  splendid  line  he  controlled.  It  was  in  his  private  car 
that  I  visited  Guadalajara  and  Tampico,  the  trip  being 
kindly  arranged  by  Mr.  Nickerson,  the  Vice-Chairman  of 
the  Line,  in  the  absence  of  Mr.  Robinson,  whom  I  met 
again  later. 

In  Guadalajara  one  quickly  notices  that  the  inner  patios 
possess  exquisitely-wrought  iron  gates.  What  a  field  for 
the  artist !  The  massive  carved-oak  doors  thrown  back,  the 
dark  arched  entrances,  the  lace-like  work  of  the  iron  gates 
beyond,  through  which  the  sun  glints  after  kissing  the 
scarlet,  purple  and  lilac  bourganvillia,  or  playing  hide-and- 
seek  among  the  petals  of  the  roses.  There  in  the  patio  are 
-  wild  arums,  tuberoses,  tangles  of  pink  and  red  geraniums, 
N  orange-trees  laden  with  flowers  and  fruit,  the  banana  with  its 
grand  leaves,  while  clustering  near  grows  that  handsome 
plant,  with  its  dark  crimson  flower,  resembling  the  old 
English  "  Love-lies-bleeding,"  but  which  is  a  castor-oil  tree. 
Butterflies  of  gorgeous  colouring  flit  over  the  blossoms 
which  entwine  themselves  in  that  wrought  iron  work. 

Guadalajara  is  famous  for  its  pottery,  and  yet  we  saw 
better  Guadalajara  ware  everywhere  else  in  Mexico  rather 
than  in  the  town  where  it  is  made !  They  had  there, 
however,  some  delightful   figures    modelled   by  the    Indians, 


GUADALAJARA.  245 

representative  of  every  kind  of  native  life,  which  were 
excellent,  and  reasonable  in  price. 

In  this  town  we  saw  a  man  who  had  lived  in  three 
centuries.  He  was  an  old  Indian,  born — according  to  the 
parish  register — in  1798,  and  therefore  (this  being  the  year 
of  grace  1901)  this  funny  old  gentleman  had  entered  his 
third  century  of  life!  His  broad  cheekbones,  toothless 
gums,  tanned,  wrinkled  skin  and  white  hair — somewhat 
unusual  colouring  for  an  Indian — made  him  a  remarkable 
picture.  He  was  hale  and  hearty,  bubbling  over  with 
fun,  yet  Schopenhauer  would  have  us  believe  happiness  is 
only  a  delusion  of  youth  and  childhood.  Perhaps  it  was  his 
second  childhood  ;  at  any  rate,  he  was  ending  his  ancient 
days  merrily  in  the  orpJian  asylum  ! 

It  is  such  a  clean  town,  so  free  from  smells  and  im- 
purities, and  the  valley  so  fertile,  that  Guadalajara  appears 
to  have  a  great  future  before  it. 

In  the  Cathedral  is  a  fine  painting  of  the  Ascension 
of  the  Virgin,  by  Murillo.  It  seemed  strange  to  come 
across  one  of  this  o-reat  master's  works  in  such  an  out-of- 
the-way  little  place.  The  French  knew  its  value,  and 
tried  to  take  it  away  in  the  time  of  unhappy  Maximilian, 
but  the  priests  removed  it  from  the  frame  and  hid  it 
safely,  so  the  picture  hangs  to-day  in  the  little  sacristy. 

In  England,  if  we  divide  a  house  so  as  to  make  two  out 
of  it,  we  number  the  one  16,  and  the  other  i6a.  In 
Mexico  they  say  16  and  16^.  Another  custom  which 
strikes  a  stranger  as  peculiar  is,  if  a  house  chance  to  be 
"  for  rent  " — as  our  Yankee  friends  would  say — to  hang 
any  old  scrap  of  paper  in  the  window  ;  it  is  not  necessary 
to  write  on  it,  the  fact  of  a  bit  of  paper  being  there  means 
that  the  house  is  to  let. 

The  masons  have  a  singular  plan  when  building  ;  they 
always  work  "below  the  cross."  that  is  to  say,  they  stick 
a  wooden  cross — often   three  or   four  feet    hio-h — above    the 

O 


246  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT, 

place  where  they  are  working,  and  every  mornhig  cross 
themselves,  and  say  an  Ave  Maria  before  starting  their 
labours.  If  they  die  after  that — and  it  is  easy  to  fall  from  a 
scaffold  in  Mexico — they  die  happily,  all  the  more  so  as  they 
probably  catch  a  glimpse  of  the  cross  while  breathing  their 
last.  Scaffolding  is  never  nailed  nor  screwed,  it  is  merely 
tied  together  with  rope  made  from  the  fibres  of  the  cactus,  or 
occasionally  from  the  hair  of  a  horse's  tail.  Scaffoldings  of 
this  loose  and  weird  nature  are  sometimes  four  storeys  high. 

A  workman  may  often  be  seen  carrying  his  cross  while 
proceeding  to  some  new  building.  He  erects  it  over  his 
head,  and  as  the  floors  rise,  the  cross  has  to  be  moved  higher 
also,  for  he  must  always  work  "  below  the  cross  "  for 
protection. 

In  a  mine,  before  the  men  burrow  any  distance  into  the 
earth  they  dig  out  space  for  a  little  shrine,  set  up  the  cross, 
and  when  the  shift  (set  of  men)  go  to  work,  they  stop  opposite 
to  this  shrine  and  say  their  Ave  Maria,  which  acts  as  a  sort 
of  moral  bath,  and  brings  them  strength  and  consolation. 
Then  again  a  cross  usually  stands  on  a  bridge  to  prevent 
the  devil  from  passing  over  it,  and  a  cross  may  likewise  be 
found  at  the  entrance  of  every  village  to  keep  out  that 
dreaded  gentleman.  The  cross  is  an  old  institution  ;  the 
Aztecs  built  crosses  thousands  of  years  ago  in  Mexico,  long, 
long  before  the  time  of  Christ. 

One  may  encounter  a  crucifix  anywhere  on  the  road-side 
put  up  to  commemorate  a  death,  as  in  most  Roman 
Catholic  countries  ;  but  here  that  symbol  also  denotes  the 
resting-place  of  a  coffin.  Churches  are  often  far  apart, 
and  the  friends  of  the  dead  bear  the  coffin  on  their 
shoulders,  and  at  each  spot  where  they  pause  to  rest  a  cross 
is  erected,  as  was  the  case  at  Charing  Cross  and  thirteen 
other  places  between  Lincoln  and  London,  when  the  body 
of  Queen  Eleanor  was  brought  for  burial  to  Westminstcu- 
Abbey,  in  1291. 


GUAD^ALAJARA.  247 

Turkeys  wander  about  the  streets  of  Guadalajara — not 
wild  birds,  but  flocks — for  sale.  A  house-wife,  hearing  the 
well-known  cry,  rushes  out,  chooses  her  turkey,  buys  it,  and 
perhaps  orders  the  salesman  to  wring  its  neck  and  pluck  off 
its  feathers.  The  more  wary  housekeeper  takes  her  turkey 
into  the  patio,  feeds  it  for  a  week,  and  only  puts  it  into 
"  mole,"  stew  with  chilli,  when  plump  and  fat.  It  is  in- 
teresting to  note  that  the  turkey  is  indigenous  to  Mexico. 

The  life  of  the  street  varies  like  a  kaleidoscope. 

The  water  in  Guadalajara  does  not  run  through  the 
streets  in  open  drains  as  in  Durango,  it  has  to  be  fetched 
from  the  public  pumps,  as  in  Spain.  The  queerest  wheel- 
barrows and  delightful  jugs  of  brown  ware  convey  it  to  the 
different  houses,  where  it  is  sold  by  measure. 

The  "  milk-cart  "  is  a  man  on  horseback  ;  he  wears  the 
national  dress,  his  coloured  sarape  hangs  across  his  legs, 
and  on  either  side  dangle  a  couple  of  big  tin  cans,  from 
which  he  sells  milk  as  required. 

Wood  is  sold  by  the  bundle,  logs,  such  as  we  burn  in 
grates  in  England,  and  three  such  logs  cost  one  farthing. 
Wood  round  Guadalajara  is  plentiful,  and  cheap  enough  to 
burn  in  the  engines,  a  rare  event  in  Mexico,  where  till 
quite  lately  most  of  the  coal  consumed  came  from  England. 
Now,  however,  when  various  new  coal  fields  are  being- 
developed  in  Northern  Mexico,  it  is  not  likely  Newcastle 
will  in  future  export  any  large  quantity  of  fuel  to  that  country. 

Mexicans  love  seclusion  ;  all  the  grand  homes  are  literally 
walled  in.  Suppose  a  man  possess  a  beautiful  house  stand- 
ing in  a  lovely  garden  ;  an  Englishman  would  probably  put 
up  an  iron  fence,  through  which  the  passers-by  might  have 
the  chance  of  enjoying  a  glimpse  of  that  garden  ;  but 
this  is  not  the  case  in  Mexico  ;  one  might  be  in  a  land  of 
prisons,  so  high  are  the  walls,  and  a  single  gate  is  the  only 
entrance,  as  the  great  carved  doors  form  the  only  entrance 
to  a  town  house.      Back  door  there  is  none. 


248  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

"  My  garden  is  for  my  own  use,"  said  a  Mexican  friend, 
"  not  for  the  entertainment  of  everyone  I  do  not  know." 

There  was  a  modern  market  in  Guadalajara,  too  clean 
and  sanitary  for  beauty,  and  also  a  delightful  old  open-air 
one,  where  every  salesman  sat  under  an  umbrella  or  shade 
of  matting,  each  more  primitive  than  its  neighbour.  Here 
a  number  of  tropical  fruits  were  on  sale. 

There  were  several  wonderful  restaurants  in  this  market, 
not  remindful  of  London,  Paris,  or  New  York,  but 
infinitely  more  picturesque.  They  consisted  of  a  brick  or 
solid  stone  stove,  behind  which  a  woman  cooked  ;  on  the 
stove  were  brown  earthenware  pots  of  stewed  turkey,  chilli 
sauces,  and  tortillas.  She  had  also  frijoles  (beans)  in  stew,  and 
before  her  on  the  stone  bench  squatted  men  and  women  who, 
at  a  cost  of  from  one  to  three  farthings,  enjoyed  a  splendid 
meal,  which  they  shovelled  into  their  mouths  with  the  help 
of  their  tortillas.  Curiously  enough  the  black  bread  of  so 
many  climes  is  quite  unknown  in  Mexico  ;  even  the  poorest 
people  eat  white  rolls  if  they  have  bread  at  all. 

Then  there  were  butchers'  shops,  before  which  hung  red 
flags  to  denote  their  trade,  together  with  what  resembled 
innunierable  large  rosaries,  which  turned  out  to  be  small 
sausages !  Every  shop  or  stall  had  a  sacred  picture  some- 
where, and  many  of  them  a  little  shrine  among  the  wares. 

Honey  seemed  a  great  feature  ;  it  was  cheap,  but  a  com- 
mon hock  bottle  into  which  it  had  been  run  for  us  to  bear 
away  to  the  car  cost  1 2  cents,  or  threepence,  that  is,  half 
as  much  as  the  honey  itself  ;  someone  had  better  start  a 
bottle  factory  in  Mexico.      He  would  make  a  fortune  ! 

Guadalajara  was  interesting  and  quaint,  its  flowers  lovely, 
but  after  a  couple  of  days'  visit  we  ran  an  hour  back  along 
the  line  so  far  as  Atecjuiza,  which  is  only  a  coach  drive  from 
the  famous  Chapala  Lake.  Our  car  was  shunted  on  to  a 
siding  to  await  our  return  on  the  following  day,  and  off  we 
started  to  spend  a  night  beside  those  famous  waters. 


(  )ur  coach,  LakclChapuIa. 


(nianajuata. 


To  face  page  249.  J 


GUADALAJARA.  249 

Stay,  let  me  describe  that  diligence!  It  was  not  exactly 
a  Lord  Mayor's  coach,  although  adorned  with  scarlet  and 
gold.  It  was  not  a  furniture  removal  van,  although  almost 
large  enough  for  one.  It  was  not  drawn  by  white  mice,  as 
some  lady's  fairy  coach  is  reported  to  have  been,  but  its 
eight  mules,  though  almost  small  enough  for  mice,  possessed 
the  strength  of  those  lions  who  still  wander  at  large  in  Mexico. 

Mr.  C.  R.  Hudson,  an  official  of  the  railway,  likewise  Mr. 
Augustin  Temple,  a  walking  encyclopaedia  on  Mexico,  and  I 
scrambled,  yes  scrambled  with  difficulty  on  to  the  box  seat, 
for  there  were  no  steps,  the  wheels  were  high,  and  the  seat 
as  inaccessible  as  the  top  of  a  Fifth  Avenue  omnibus  in  New 
York,  on  which  I  had  a  glorious  ride  a  few  months  pre- 
viously, although  when  half-way  up  (by  the  Dewey  Arch  at 
Broadway  Corner)  I  wished  I  had  never  begun  the  ascent, 
and  wondered  whether  to  go  on  or  come  down.  I  decided 
to  persevere,  and  ruined  a  pair  of  white  gloves  in  the 
attempt.  No  one  knows  what  climbing  to  the  top  of 
a  Fifth  Avenue  'bus  means  who  has  not  tried  it,  and  our 
diligence  was  the  same  sort  of  adventure  ;  but  in  wilder 
Mexico  best  clothes  were  no  more,  and  fashionable  New 
York  Society  was  not  looking  on,  so  it  was  all  fun  and  not 
embarrassment.  Mrs.  Hudson  and  her  sister  preferred  to 
ride  with  eight  others  inside  that  weird  coach. 

We  mounted  to  our  seats  eventually,  and  before  us  sat  the 
driver  holding  six  reins  and  a  whip,  his  feet  resting  upon 
the  brake;  next  to  him  was  his  "help"  with  two  whips. 
The  first  was  short,  to  tickle  up  the  last  two  mules,  the 
wheelers  in  fact  ;  the  driver's  whip  was  long,  to  chastise 
the  four  mules  abreast,  and  the  help's  second  whip  was 
some  twenty-four  feet  long  with  a  short  handle.  He  amazed 
me  by  slashing  so  dexterously  with  it  that  he  hit  the  two 
leaders  quite  easily,  for  our  team  consisted  of  eight  mules. 
Many  an  expert  four-in-hand  driver  would  give  a  good  deal 
to  use  his  whip  as  cleverly  as   the   Mexican   Indian  drivers  ; 


250  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

but  then  it  is  said  no  white  man  can  ever  ride,  drive,  or  pack 
a  mule  properly  ! 

It  was  a  glorious  drive  through  the  mountains  to  Chapala 
Lake.  We  galloped  most  of  the  way,  bumped  over 
bad  roads  and  swung  round  corners  in  a  manner  which 
would  surprise  many  folk.  The  sun  shone  brilliantly,  the 
"  help  "  suggested  the  "  parasol  " — our  good  old  English 
word  of  Latin  origin — and  accordingly  pulled  up  a  cover, 
such  as  a  baby's  perambulator  possesses,  and  tied  it  down  to 
the  foot-board  with  a  piece  of  stout  rope.  Every  now  and 
then  something  went  wrong  with  the  brake  ;  down  jumped 
the  help,  hatchet  in  hand,  and  with  a  block  of  wood  about  a 
foot  square,  of  which  we  carried  about  a  dozen  ;  he  hacked 
the  old  one  off,  and  then  proceeded  to  tie  the  new  one  on. 
No  coach  in  Mexico  ever  proceeds  far  on  a  journey  ere 
requiring  some  repairs  of  this  sort,  and  the  "helps"  are 
wonderfully  clever  in  arranging  such  trifles.  "  Done," 
he  called,  and  off  the  driver  started,  leaving  the  poor  help 
hanging  like  a  fly  to  the  step,  just  to  watch  that  all  was 
right  with  the  new  brake,  and  then  he  scrambled  back  on  to 
the  box  without  our  drawing  rein. 

The  driver  was  really  a  genius  ;  he  managed  his  eight 
mules  controlled  by  six  heavy  reins,  continually  whipped  up 
the  four  middle  animals  and  worked  that  heavy  brake,  even 
while  we  were  going  clown  hill  at  a  gallop,  with  his  foot. 
His  leg  was  all  twisted  round  outside  his  foot-board,  and  to 
get  more  purchase  on  the  brake,  his  "helper"  pressed 
against  his  near  side  to  add  to  the  weight.  The  heavy  old 
coach  hanging  on  thick  leather  straps  swung  from  side  to 
side  ;  boulders  on  the  road,  rivers  across  the  path  and  such- 
like trifles  nearly  sent  us  flying  from  our  seats  ever  and 
again  ;  but  nothing  really  happened,  it  was  all  in  the  day's 
work,  and  nerves  are  not  permitted  in  Mexico.  Eagles  and 
hawks  flew  overhead,  and  in  the  distance  we  saw  Colima, 
one  of  the  few  active  volcanoes  in  Mexico,  some  ninety  miles 


GUADALAJARA.  251 

away,  and  only  about  sixty  miles  distant  from  the  Pacific 
Coast. 

We  stayed  at  Chapala,  where  there  are  sulphur  baths  on 
the  lake  of  that  name.  Whether  those  natural  springs  in- 
duced the  folk  to  wash,  or  whether  they  did  so  on  account  of 
its  being  Sunday,  I  know  not  ;  but  everywhere  was  cleanli- 
ness. Spotless  linen  was  worn  on  all  sides  ;  women,  stripped 
to  the  waist,  were  washino;  their  clothes  in  the  stream  ;  wash- 
ing  was  on  every  side.  After  six  months'  sojourn  in  Mexico 
I  can  honestly  say  I  consider  the  natives  are  most  cleanly. 
In  the  country,  by  a  lake  or  stream,  they  are  always  washing 
and  bathing,  and  only  in  the  squalid  portions  of  the  towns 
does  dirt  exist. 

On  one  day  of  the  year  at  least  every  man,  woman  and 
child  in  Mexico  bathes,  namely,  the  24th  of  June,  which,  it 
will  be  remembered,  is  St.  John  the  Baptist's  day.  This 
yearly  bath  is  taken  in  honour  of  St.  John,  who  chose  bap- 
tism by  total  immersion  as  his  symbol  of  penitence  and 
purification.  In  Edward  VI.'s  first  Prayer-book  we  read 
that  "  the  prieste  "  had  "  to  dyppe  the  child  in  the  water 
thryse." 

There  is  one  part  of  their  bodies  they  neglect,  however, 
viz.,  their  heads  ;  they  have  not  learnt  the  value  of  paraffin, 
as  applied  in  hospitals,  and  five,  six  or  even  seven  people 
will  sit  in  a  row  like  ninepins,  searching  for  the  animals 
which  seem  indio-enous  to  neQ-lected  locks.  It  is  not  a 
pretty  sketch,  but  so  true  a  picture  of  Mexican  daily  life  that 
it  cannot  be  omitted. 

Several  times  we  passed  folk  riding  pillion  ;  generally  the 
woman  sat  sideways,  the  man  astride  behind,  and  they 
jogged  on  as  contentedly  as  did  our  forefathers  in  the 
Highlands  of  Scotland,  who  rode  pillion  to  kirk  to  be  married. 

During  our  exciting  drive  to  Chapala,  several  strange 
trees  arrested  my  attention.  To  prevent  the  cattle 
from   stealing  the   fodder,    Indian   corn    is   put   up   into  the 


252  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

forked  arms  of  the  trees.  One  sees  a  nice  large  tree, 
which  looks  as  though  it  were  in  extraordinarily  full  leaf, 
and  on  drawing  nearer  discovers  that  there  is  a  hay  or 
rather  a  corn-stack,  among  its  boughs  ! 

The  waggons  on  the  road  were  all  drawn  by  ox  teams, 
such  funny  waggons,  too  ;  just  ribs  of  bamboo,  the  sides 
being  kept  together  with  matting,  or  hairy  cow-hide,  yet 
the  wheels  were  massive  blocks  of  wood.  The  poor  people 
cannot  afford  to  buy  wheels,  spokes  are  difficult  to  make, 
and  a  good  solid  trunk  of  a  tree  can  be  sliced  into  a 
number  of  convenient  wheels.  They  look  heavy  and 
cumbersome,  but  they  work  and  wear,  and  after  all  that  is 
what  is  wanted.  "  Time  was  made  for  man  "  suits  very 
well  in  Mexico,  as  does  the  Finnish  proverb,  "  God  did 
not  create  hurry." 

A  family  removal,  and  what  a  family  !  There  appeared 
to  be  about  fifty  of  them,  and  perhaps  there  were,  for 
Mexican  families — even  of  the  highest  rank — live  together  in 
a  manner  that  is  perfectly  incomprehensible  to  English  ideas. 
Dozens  of  members  of  this  family  were  stowed  away 
behind  the  mattino-  walls  of  the  cart,  and  as  the  team  of 
oxen  drew  up  for  us  to  pass,  every  fold  of  matting  was 
raised,  and  out  popped  two  or  three  heads.  It  was  very 
hot,  and  what  the  temperature  must  have  been  inside  that 
cart  we  shudder  to  think.  The  few  worldly  goods  possessed 
by  these  folk  were  on  another  waggon  ;  men  sat  on  the  top 
with  fowls  tied  by  the  leg,  pigs  or  cats  in  their  laps,  and 
bird-cages  hanging  over  the  edge  of  the  cart. 

We  passed  ;  the  waggon  drivers  took  their  long  sticks 
with  spear  points  at  the  end,  prodded  those  handsome  old 
oxen,  and  on  they  plodded. 

Some  boys  were  larking  by  the  roadside  over  their  mid- 
day meal,  their  horses  being  tethered  near  by.  Something- 
displeased  one  of  them.  In  an  instant  there  was  a  flash  of 
steel,  and  each  youth  had  drawn  the  sword  or  machete  which 


•-.-      c      « 


..  .E 


3    u 
""    Ml 

uT  c 

I'i 

s 


GUADALAJARA. 


253 


he  carried.  The  quarrel  ended  in  nothing  ;  but  the 
rapidity  with  which  swords  were  drawn,  and  the  fact  that 
each  youth  carried  one,  showed  the  temper  of  the  country. 

Chapala  enjoys  a  glorious  climate,  tropical  vegetation 
abounds,  and  birds  and  beasts  from  every  clime  shelter 
along  the  shores  of  the  lake  when  they  are  driven  south- 
wards by  the  cold.  Innumerable  orchids  clustered  on  the 
trees.  There  are  great  tall  plants,  twenty  or  thirty  feet 
high,  of  bourganvillia — flaming  red,  lilac  and  purple — also 
geraniums,  palms  and  cocoanuts. 

Delicious  fish  abound  in  the  Lake,  which  is  about  eighty 
miles  long  ;  they  are  caught  in  nets.  These  pescado 
bianco  (white  fish)  are  literally  transparent  when  they  come 
out  of  the  water.  They  are  spoken  of  as  lake  herring, 
though  I  cannot  say  I  thought  they  resembled  a  Loch  Fyne 
herring  in  taste  so  much  as  a  river  trout. 

Below  is  a  rough  table  of  the  commoner  birds,  beasts, 
and  plants  of  Mexico,  given  me  by  a  sporting  friend  : — 


Birds. 

Egret  (native  home). 

In  winter,  all  migratory 
Duck  and  Pelican  and 
Swan  of  North  America. 

Wood  Duck. 

Aluscovy  Dtick. 

Turkeys  (three  varieties). 

Pheasants  (five  kinds). 

Quails  (three  kinds). 

Humming  -  birds  (sixty 
kinds).  These  are  bril- 
liantly coloured  in 
plumage,  are  fly-catch- 
ers, but  do  not  sing. 

Parrot  (six  common  varie- 
ties). 


Beasts. 

Lion  (panther). 

Tiger  (jaguar).  Very  dan- 
gerous. 

Timber-wolf  (dangerous). 

Boyote  (small  like  a  fox). 

Bears  (three  kinds). 

Badgers. 

Raccoons. 

Opossum. 

Dabali  (wild  boar). 

Deer  (three  kinds). 

Antelopes. 

Squirrels  (five  kinds). 
They  are  wonderfully 
good  eating. 

Tapirs. 

Alligators. 

Crocodiles. 

Manatee  (a  small  kind  of 
hippopotamus  which 
lives  in  swamps). 

Big-horn  Mountain  Sheep. 

Ibc.x. 


Plants. 

Guamuchil.  A  large  tree 
which  resembles  the  apple. 
The  fruit  is  a  long  green 
pod  containing  white  pulp 
over  seed  ;  it  is  delicious. 

Pitahay.  A  giant  cactus 
which  bears  fruit  aljout 
the  size  of  a  peach,  re- 
sembles a  pocket  with 
thorns  outside.  The  in- 
side tastes  like  strawberry. 

Nopal.      Prickly  pear. 

Mango. 

Lima  Dulce.     Sweet  lime. 

ALelon  Zapote,  which  grow 
on  trees  in  clusters. 
Hundreds  of  small  black 
pips  like  hard  currants. 

Acjuacate.  A  vivid  green 
lemon  used  in  salad. 

Granadita,  the  fruit  of  the 
Passion  Flower. 

Chico  Zapote,  a  sort  of 
mango,  really  the  fruit  of 
the  gum  tree  from  which 
chewing  gum  is  made. 
A  brown  fruit,  the  colour 
of  a  potato  and  shaped 
like  an  orantie. 


254  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

The  black,  white  and  red  plumage  of  the  giant  wood- 
pecker is  a  wonderful  contrast  to  his  ivory-like  beak.  It 
is  an  Indian  superstition  that  the  short  red  feathers  from  the 
head  will  cure  all  diseases  if  worn  in  the  ears,  consequently 
these  birds  fetch  high  prices.  They  are  rare,  and  difficult 
to  shoot,  that  being  probably  the  reason  why  the  supersti- 
tion has  arisen,  and   they  are  so  highly  prized. 

In  the  evening  we  went  out  to  look  at  the  moon,  on 
Chapala  Lake — one  of  those  lovely  moons  all  lakes  know 
so  well  how  to  reflect.  In  front  of  the  hotel  door  we  saw 
a  weird  figure  with  a  flaming  torch  in  his  hand,  apparently 
looking  for  something  on  the  ground.     What  had  he  lost  } 

"  I  am  burning  ants,"  was  his  reply  ;  under  a  wild  fig 
tree — as  big  as  an  ordinary  horse-chestnut — these  ants, 
big  as  bees,  had  made  their  home.  They  came  out  at 
night,  whole  families  of  them,  each  one  carrying  a  little 
leaf  he  had  purloined  from  the  tree,  and  this  dark  gentle- 
man with  his  torch  of  resin  was  burning  them  wholesale. 
He  swept  his  death  weapon  remorselessly  along  the  ground, 
and  up  the  sides  of  any  wall  where  he  saw  a  family  of  ants 
promenading,  and  we  heard  them  cremated.  They  looked 
almost  as  large  and  brown  as  those  delicious  oyster  crabs 
which  frizzle  on  to  one's  plate  at  Delmonico's.  But  these 
Mexican  ants  are  really  a  plague,  for  they  will  strip  a  tree  of 
its  entire  foliagfe  in  one  nio-ht. 

What  a  lovely  evening  that  was  at  Chapala.  How 
gloriously  bright  the  moon,  but  I  felt  homesick,  and 
Moore's  beautiful  lines  came  back  to  me  : — 

"  The  best  charms  of  nature  improve 

When  we  see  them  reflected  from- looks  that  we  love.'' 

What  truth  lies  in  those  two  lines.  Of  course,  the 
"strong-minded  woman,"  the  "elderly  scribe,"  ought  never 
to  feel  lonely  or  homesick  ;  but  I  did,  and  in  such  peace- 
ful   hours  as  these,   or  in  the  gay    throng    of   some   large 


GUADALAJARA.  255 

reception,  trouble  came  upon  me.  The  greater  the  crowd, 
the  more  public  the  moment,  the  more  I  longed  for  my  own 
kith  and  kin  to  share  its  pleasures  with  me.  Stupid  but  true  ! 
How  much  happiness  or  misery  lies  in  a  mattress.  In 
Normandy,  Brittany  or  Holland  one  gazes  up  at  the 
feathery  mound  reaching  almost  to  the  ceiling,  and  looks 
anxiously  for  the  ladder  by  which  to  mount  so  high,  but 
oh,  what  lovely  beds  they  are  when  one  gets  there,  if  the 
weather  be  not  too  hot  for  feathers ! 

In  Norway  one  bumps  one's  feet  or  one's  head  against  the 
wooden  bedstead,  made  as  small  to-day  as  it  was  when  the 
old  Viking  ship  (now  in  Christiania)  was  built,  and  a  trav- 
eller has  to  acquire  a  habit  of  curling  round  before  he  can 
rest  at  all  comfortably  on  a  bed  in  that  country,  where  the 
feathers  are  on  top,  as  they  are  in  Germany,  instead  of 
below  as  in  France. 

A  Mexican  bed  also  has  its  little  peculiarity  ;  it  )nay  be 
of  brass,  of  iron,  or  wood,  but  the  mattress — judging  by 
its  hardness — is  of  the  same  substance  as  the  frame. 
Weary  limbs  ache,  but  a  hard  bed,  some  wiseacre  remarks, 
"  is  so  healthy  !  " 

That  healthy  hardness   is   not   all    the   trouble,  however, 
the  sheet  and  the  blanket  are  cut  exactly  the   same  size   as 
the  bed,  consequently  when  the  weary  traveller  gets  in,  his 
toes  get  out  ;  he  pulls  the  covering  clown   only  to  find  that 
he  is  uncovered  to  the  waist.      He  turns  over,    his   back   is 
bare  ;     he    rolls    over,    the     other    side     is    exposed.      It    is 
exactly  like  sleeping  under  a  pocket-handkerchief ! 
The  sufferer  complains — I  did,  at  all  events. 
"  Oh,"  said  a  Mexican  friend.    "  You  did  not  roll  yourself 
up  properly.      You  must  wind  yourself  round  with  the  bed- 
clothes ;    they  are  not  meant  to  hang  over.      Of  course  not." 
The   stranger    endeavours    to    follow    this    advice  ;    but 
lifelong  experience  is   necessary  to  enable   the  possessor  of 
an  ordinary  frame  to  roll  himself  round  snugly  into  a  towel. 


2  56  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

Then  the  pillows — ah,  those  pillows  are  something  to  be 
remembered.  They  are  not  down,  not  even  feathers,  or 
horse-hair  or  pine-needles — they  are  solid  wool.  Just  nice, 
fat,  hard  knobs  of  wool.  You  can  stand  on  them,  and  they 
do  not  give  ;  you  can  play  football  with  them — no  pumping 
up  is  necessary  ;  they  remain  as  hard  and  firm  at  the  end  of 
the  season  as  they  were  at  the  beginning. 

A  stiff  neck.  Oh,  what  a  stiff  neck !  And  not  only 
a  stiff  neck,  but  a  stiff  back  and  aching  limbs  await  the 
foreigner  pretty  often  in  dear  old  Mexico.  But  folk  who 
travel  have  to  put  up  with  small  discomforts,and  those  who 
cannot  accept  them  with  good-natured  grace  had  better 
stay  away,  not  only  for  their  own  sakes,  but  because  they 
will  mar  the  pleasure  of  everyone  else.  We  travel  to 
enjoy  ourselves,  to  look  for  the  best  in  all  things,  not  to 
grizzle  over  our  experiences,  still  we  pray  leave  to  be  allowed 
a  little  joke  concerning  them  occasionally  ! 

Trifling  pleasures  give  most  enjoyment,  just  as  small  ills 
are  the  least  endurable. 

Of  all  the  towns  in  Mexico,  Guanajuato  (pronounced 
Wan-a-wah-to),  interested  me  the  most.  Rome  was  built 
on  seven  hills — Guanajuato  was  built  in  seven  valleys  or 
barrancas,  and  the  result  is  most  strange.  The  valleys  are 
long  and  narrow,  therefore  the  town  is  sometimes  only  one 
street  wide,  and  yet  it  straggles  along  for  nearly  five  miles  in 
length. 

Every  form  of  ancient  and  modern  architecture  is  to 
be  found  there,  from  the  old  adobe  dwellings  with  their 
flat  roofs  and  Biblical  appearance,  to  the  magnificent  modern 
theatre.  Flights  of  steps,  hewn  out  of  solid  rock,  lead  from 
the  main  street  in  every  direction,  and  a  donkey  (burro) 
thinks  nothing  of  walking  up  or  down  those  stairways. 
The  shops  have  no  fronts,  only  a  large  opening  in  the  wall, 
and  a  horseman  rides  under  the  arch,  buys  what  he  requires, 
and  backs  his  steed  out  again.      It  is  a  town  full  of  surprises 


s'(- 


•*  ^%t 


'  'h-^(^*'0i. 


o 


GUADALAJARA.  257 

— a  Spanish  town  with  a  strain  of  barbarity  and  a  tinge  of 
modernity.  For  hundreds  of  years  it  has  been  a  great 
mining  centre,  which  it  is  to  the  present  day.  Look  at  that 
cavalcade  of  a  hundred  burros  laden  with  sacks  of  ore  slowly 
trudo-inof  down  the  mountain  to  the  smeltino^  works. 

The  tram-car,  drawn  by  four  sturdy  mules,  plies  up-hill  for 
five  miles  from  the  station  at  a  gallop,  and  as  we  ascend  we 
leave  the  old  world  behind  us — the  water-carrier  with  his 
enormous  earthenware  jar  on  its  wooden  base,  the  women 
sitting  fanning  their  sweets  with  many-coloured  strips  of 
paper  for  hours  together  to  keep  away  the  flies,  the  queer 
open  farriers'  shops  where  strange  little  horses  are  being  shod, 
the  coffins  borne  throuQ-h  the  streets  to  fetch  the  dead, 
the  enormous  oak  beams  men — nearly  bent  double  by  the 
weight — are  carrying  on  their  shoulders,  the  open  house 
doors  throuo^h  which  one  can  see  the  Christmas  altar  still 
standing  in  one  corner  of  the  dark  little  room — or  a  picture 
of  the  Guadalupe  Virgin  plastered  on  the  door  to  bring 
good  luck — all  this  we  leave  behind,  and  at  the  summit  of 
the  hill  find  handsome  villas  and  lovely  gardens,  the  homes 
of  luxury  and  wealth. 

Many  of  the  houses  are  built  right  into  the  rock,  the  basalt 
forms  their  back.  The  bottom  floor  is  only  one  room  deep, 
but  as  the  hill  slants  the  second  storey  may  be  two  rooms 
wide,  and  so  on.  The  houses  literally  cling  to  the  mountain 
side  as  limpets  to  rocks. 

By  way  of  cheerful  entertainment  we  walked  to  the  ceme- 
tery. It  was  a  climb,  and  oh,  we  were  hot,  for  the  midday 
sun  in  January  knows  how  to  burn.  Our  visit  was  to  the 
mummies. 

In  the  cemetery  the  soil  quickly  mummifies  the  corpse,  as 
in  certain  parts  of  Finland   and   Norway. 

In  Guanajuato  the  earth  shrinks  the  body  and  turns  it 
dark  brown,  until  it  resembles  a  mummy.  Wlien  the  corpses 
are  dug  up  to  make  room  for  others,  the  best  are  kept  for 

17 


258  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

the  corridor  of  mummies.     A  man  standing  beside  us  was 
asked  if  he  knew  any  of  them. 

"  Si,  Seiiora,  the  third  on  the  right  is  my  grandfather,"  he 
-answered  quite  cheerfully. 

During  the  last  year  or  two  white  cotton  garments  have 
been  hung  upon  the  corpses  because  it  is  considered  "  nicer," 
so  there  they  stand,  the  men  on  one  side  and  the  women  on 
the  other,  just  as  do  the  old  monks  in  the  Church  at  Rome. 

There  is  yet  another  similarity  to  Rome  in  this  old  Mexi- 
can town,  the  entire  cemetery  is  surrounded  by  a  high  wall, 
and  this  wall  contains  square  apertures  for  the  reception  of 
the  dead.  One  can  be  bought  or  hired,  and  the  corpse  with 
or  without  a  coffin  is  slipped  in  and  bricked  up.  It  re- 
minded me  of  the  Columbarium  at  Rome,  only  the  latter  is 
far  the  more  sanitary  and  poetical,  containing  ashes  of  the 
cremated  dead  instead  of  decomposing  bodies  as  at  Guana- 
juato. 

Guanajuato  is  certainly  the  most  artistically  picturesque 
town  in  Mexico. 

Our  next  journey  brought  us  to  Oueretaro  of  sad 
memories. 

The  Emperor  Maximilian  was  shot  at  Oueretaro  (pro- 
nounced Kay-ret-a-ro),  but  apart  from  that  fact  the  town  is 
certainly  well  worth  a  visit.  It  is  a  queer  old  place,  composed 
almost  entirely  of  one-storey  buildings  ;  all  the  houses  are 
built  alike,  but  differ  in  colour,  and  with  the  various  bird- 
cages hanging  at  the  doors  and  the  people  sitting  in  the  gut- 
ters or  lolling  on  the  door-steps,  they  appear  quite  different. 
Every  odd  man  in  the  street  seemed  to  have  opals  to  sell  ; 
they  are  found  in  large  quantities  and  are  sold  by  handfuls 
in  the  streets  by  stray  vendors.  Of  course,  a  pur- 
chaser must  take  the  risk  of  the  stones  being  good,  bad  or 
indifferent.  An  Indian  steps  forward,  produces  a  little  black 
rag  or  bit  of  velvet  from  his  pocket,  undoes  it  in  the  palm  of 
his  hand,  and  offers  the  lot  of  opals  for  a  few  shillings. 


GUADALAJARA.  259 

It  was  the  same  at  the  station,  and  again  at  Aguas 
Calientes.  The  platform  was  thronged  with  sellers  of  opals 
or  drawn  thread  embroidery  worked  by  the  Indians  round 
about,  and  sold  at  wonderfully  reasonable  rates,  some  of 
the  specimens  being  exquisite. 

A  vast  amount  of  buying  and  selling  is  done  at  railway 
stations,  probably  half  the  shopping  of  every  Mexican  town 
is  effected  there  or  in  the  streets.  The  large  open  spaces 
opposite  the  Cathedrals,  Sundays  included,  are  full  of 
gorgeous  handkerchiefs,  laces,  ribbons,  sweets,  fruits,  or 
earthenware,  all  of  which  articles  may  be  seen  exposed  for 
sale  on  the  open   road.     Apparently  tradesmen  pay  no  rent  ! 

Another  amusing  arrangement  is  the  delivery  of  bread  or 
washing ;  both  articles  are  put  in  baskets  six  feet  across, 
and  ten  inches  deep.  The  white  rolls  and  crescents  are 
piled  up  until  the  stranger  wonders  how  they  ever  keep 
in  place,  and  these  baskets,  balanced  on  men's  heads, 
are  carried  through  the  streets  every  morning.  The  same 
method  is  followed  with  the  washing,  but  starched  dresses, 
petticoats  and  other  such  garments,  are  pinned  on  so  that 
they  may  hang  down  to  avoid  being  creased.  Inside  is  the 
man  ;  but  often  so  completely  covered  with  starched  goods 
that  he  looks  like  a  "  Jack  in  the  Green  "  or  a  John  in  the 
blue! 

It  is  worth  going  to  Oueretaro  to  see  one  church,  namely, 
Santa  Rosa.  The  exterior  is  handsome  with  well-carved, 
beautiful  doors,  as  is  the  case  with  so  many  Mexican 
churches,  while  inside  is  probably  some  of  the  finest  gold 
lacquered  wood  to  be  found  in  the  world.  It  is  not  a  large 
church,  but  the  workmanship  is  exquisite — splendidly  deep 
carvings  are  thickly  covered  in  gold  leaf,  here  and  there 
lovely  shades  of  green,  like  the  sheen  on  the  wings  of  a 
parrot,  mingle  with  the  shades  of  gold  and  brown,  and 
tortoiseshell  is  thinly  laid  over  other  parts  to  add  richness  to 
the  effect.     Even  the  confessional    boxes   are  lacquered  and 

17* 


26o  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

carved  in  the  same  way.  Time  and  money  were  not  spared 
on  this  masterpiece  of  art  by  the  Spaniards  three  centuries 
ago,  but,  alas !  the  great  altar  is  gone.  The  French 
/destroyed  it,  stole  the  gold  said  to  have  been  worth  a  million 
and  a  half  dollars,  and  burned  the  carvings  ;  yet  enough 
remains  to  well  repay  a  visit.  Of  course,  there  are  cheap 
paper  flowers  and  ugly  little  wax  figures,  the  usual  strange 
blending  of  tawdry  finery  with  solid  majesty  !  The  carving, 
however,  cannot  be  spoiled. 

What  wonderful  things  the  Roman  Catholic  Church 
achieved  in  the  past ;  what  encouragement  it  gave  to  art, 
literature,  science  and  learning!  How  much  the  world  has 
to  thank  those  old  priests  for  ;  but  the  younger  generations 
do  not  seem  to  follow  in  their  footsteps. 

The  term  "a  city  of  domes"  might  well  be  applied  to 
Queretaro.  It  is  a  minor  Moscow.  The  domes  are  round 
and  tiled,  and  the  effect  in  the  evening  light  is  beautiful, 
seen  from  the  spot  where  Maximilian  was  shot. 

As  we  were  walking  along  the  street  at  noon  on  Sunday, 
a  band  accompanied  by  a  number  of  persons  attracted  our 
attention.      It  was  a  bull-fight  procession. 

There  were  the  picadores,  matadores,  capeadores,  butcher 
and  chamberlain,  all  marching  through  the  streets  to  the 
strains  of  music,  followed  by  half  the  population  of  the  town. 
This  was  the  advertisement  for  the  afternoon's  fray. 

It  was  in  Queretaro  that  I  first  saw  much  of  the  Rurales, 
a  remarkable  corps  of  soldiers  or  police,  but  whose  more 
intimate  acquaintance  I  was  to  make  a  few  weeks  later  when 
escorted  through  the  State  of  Morelos  by  its  Governor  and 
a  guard  of  forty  mounted  soldiers. 

These  Rurales  are  the  pride  and  pick  of  the  army. 
They  are  a  perfectly  unique  institution  which  exists  only  in 
Mexico.  Their  origin  was  strange.  When  General  Diaz 
came  into  power,  it  was  to  rule  a  country  occupied  by  tribes 
of  bandits,  whose  fathers  and  grandfathers  had  been  bandits 


Rurales,  the  only  body  of  soldiers  of  the  kind  in  the  world. 


Water, carrier,  ( iiuiiiajuala. 


GUADALAJARA.  261 

before  them.  They  plundered,  caused  revolutions,  and 
were  a  strong  force  for  good  or  ill,  generally  the  latter. 
General  Diaz  recognised  their  power,  admired  their  great 
moral  and  physical  strength,  and  decided  to  make  use  of 
their  knowledge  of  every  hill  and  dale  in  the  land.  He 
offered  amnesty,  suggested  that  he  would  organise  them  into 
an  army  corps  with  regular  pay  at  a  higher  rate  than  any 
other  cavalrymen  in  the  world.  They  were  to  keep  order 
and  subdue  revolution,  theft  and  riot.  The  bandits  accepted 
his  proposal,  and  became  Rurales. 

No  finer  body  of  men  could  be  met  with  ;  they  are  now  the 
backbone  of  the  country.  They  have  no  fixed  abode  ;  each 
State  has  its  band  of  Rurales,  and  they  go  where  required, 
or  when  disturbances  and  troubles  break  out,  for  even  to-day 
such  things  are  not  unknown  in  Mexico.  Each  State  has 
its  mark  on  the  grey  silver  embroidered  hat,  for  example,  E*^ 
(Estado),  i\P  (de  Morelos) ;  the  uniform  is  always  grey  with 
red  ties  and  wide  belts  ;  brown  leather  saddles  and  bridles 
from  which  red  tassels  dangle,  embroidered  trousers 
(chaparreras)  ;  and  the  Rurales  are  armed  with  pistols, 
machete  (sword)  and  rifle. 

Instead  of  going  to  the  bull-fight,  we  watched  the 
Rurales  ride  past,  and  then  took  a  drive. 

A  mule-car  ride— or  rather  gallop — of  an  hour  through  a 
well-grown  orchard  district — planted  not  with  apple,  pear  or 
cherry  trees,  which  we  expect  an  orchard  to  contain,  but 
oranges,  lemons,  limes,  mangoes,  bananas,  and  other  semi- 
tropical  fruit — brought  us  to  a  queer  little  village.  On  dis- 
mounting from  the  tram,  and  turning  a  corner  of  a  street, 
we  suddenly  found  ourselves  looking  over  a  wall,  attracted 
thereto  by  the  laughter  behind.      It  was  a  public  bath  ! 

A  large  square  swimming-bath  where  men,  women  and 
children  were  enjoying  themselves — very  lightly  clad — 
beneath  the  blue  vault  of  heaven.  It  was  really  a  pretty 
sight  ;    fathers  were   teaching  their  little    olive-brown    oft"- 


262  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

spring  to  swim,  youths  were  having  races,  diving  and  dis- 
porting themselves  as  to  the  manner  born  ;  old  women  were 
sitting  on  the  steps  while  their  daughters  washed  their  heads 
or  feet.  Everyone  had  his  own  soap,  and  used  a  bountiful 
supply  before  beginning  his  aquatic  capers.  Although  it 
was  a  warm  spring  bath,  it  was  full  of  little  fish,  who  were 
swimming  around  gaily,  much  to  the  amusement  of  the  chil- 
dren who  tried  to  catch  them. 

A  wide  flight  of  steps — the  whole  width  of  the  bath — 
descended  directly  into  the  water,  from  a  wider  platform, 
behind  which  was  a  kind  of  covered-in  shed.  Here  under  a 
roof  the  P'ood  folk  undressed,  but  as  there  was  no  wall  in 
front  they  were  quite  in  the  public  gaze,  nevertheless  they 
all  did  it  so  modestly,  and  with  such  an  absence  of  assumed 
nonsense,  that  it  seemed  quite  natural.  At  the  same  time  if 
a  few  wooden  boards  were  put  up,  the  men  could  be  divided 
from  the  women  while  performing  their  toilets.  Such  a 
simple  arrangement  would  not  cost  much,  and  might  make 
matters  more  comfortable  for  both  sexes. 

That  they  should  bathe  together  seems  only  natural  to 
them,  and  anyone  who  could  see  those  happy  family  parties 
enjoying  their  Sunday  dip  would  think  so  too. 


m 


Burros  (donkeys).     Cross  to  keep  away  llie  devil  is  depicted  on  the  wall. 


To  face  page  263.  ] 


26- 


CHAPTER   XVI. 

THE  EMPEROR  MAXIMILIAN  AND  EMPRESS  CARLOTTA. 

The  modern  history  of  Mexico  is  so, very  modern  that  many 
of  the  persons  who  helped  to  build  it  up  are  still  alive,  and 
some  of  them  have  kindly  told  me  a  few  of  their  personal 
reminiscences  of  the  Emperor  Maximilian  and  Empress 
Carlotta. 

In  the  history  of  Mexico  there  is  nothing  more  inter- 
esting or  pathetic  than  this  episode  of  Maximilian  and  his 
Consort.  It  was  indeed  an  evil  moment  when  he  was 
tempted  to  listen  to  the  proposition  of  Napoleon  III.  ! 

Reared  in  Imperial  pomp,  a  refined  and  cultivated  man, 
with  a  devoted  wife,  he  was  living  in  peace  at  Miramar, 
when  first  approached  on  this  subject.  With  a  woman's 
instinct  the  Archduchess  at  first  turned  a  deaf  ear  to  the 
proposal,  but  as  her  husband  became  enthusiastic  at  the 
prospect  of  a  glorious  future,  she  grew  reconciled,  and  they 
started  on  their  ill-fated  journey  to  Mexico  full  of  hope, 
after  bidding  farewell  to  their  lovely  home,  and  the  happy 
surroundings  of  their  native  land. 

In  Mexico  they  were  warmly  received,  even  the  Indian 
population  greeting  their  new  Emperor  with  manifestations 
of  joy,  for,  believing  in  the  legend  of  Ouetzalcotl,  they 
looked  upon  him  as  the  fair  white  man  who  was  to  come 
from  the  East  to  rescue  them  from  their  oppressed  con- 
dition. 


264  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

The  religious  question  was  still  the  trouble  in  1863. 
Although  Juarez's  government  had  endeavoured  to  settle  this 
difficult  question,  it  partly  failed.  At  first  it  seemed  as  if 
Maximilian  would  be  able  to  cope  with  the  matter,  but  it 
soon  became  evident  he  was  weak  and  incompetent.  Under 
his  rule  evil  passions  were  permitted  to  get  the  upper  hand. 
Consequently  the  situation  soon  became  more  difficult,  for  it 
needed  a  stronger  individuality  than  his  to  steer  the  storm- 
tossed  barque  of  Church  and  State  into  tranquil  waters. 

Colonel  George  M.  Green,  a  Canadian  by  birth,  played 
no  unimportant  part  in  these  troubled  days  and  the  final 
overthrow  of  Maximilian.  When  I  met  him  he  was  a  smart- 
looking,  well-preserved  man  about  sixty  years  of  age.  It 
appears  strange  that  he,  being  a  British  subject,  should 
become  a  Colonel  in  the  Mexican  army,  but  the  whole  thing 
occurred  quite  naturally. 

Educated  for  an  artist,  the  venturesome  lad  when  about 
seventeen  conceived  a  desire  to  journey  with  his  daguerro- 
type  camera — a  new  invention  in  1854 — to  Mexico,  and 
take  views  of  the  fighting  army.  After  his  arrival  he  joined 
the  Liberal  side,  headed  by  Juarez.  Young  Green  left 
Guadalajara  with  the  army  in  1858.  At  first  all  went  well  ; 
he  had  his  carriage  and  his  implements,  and  secured  many 
excellent  pictures,  some  of  which  were  published  in  Harper  s 
Magazine. 

At  the  battle  of  Salamanca  the  young  artist  was  taken 
prisoner. 

"  I  had  a  bad  time  of  it,"  said  Colonel  Green;  "they 
tied  me  arm  to  arm  with  a  low-born  Indian,  and  for  two 
days  and  a  night  we  were  marched,  almost  without  rest, 
with  a  string  of  other  prisoners,  to  Leon.  Of  course  I  lost 
my  kit  and  apparatus.  They  treated  us  horribly  ;  we  had 
scanty  food,  great  fatigue,  and  no  consideration  of  any  kind. 
When  we  reached  Leon  I  was  called  before  General 
Miramon  (executed  later  with  Maximilian),  who  asked  why 


THE  EMPEROR   MAXIMILIAN.  265 

I  was  fiehtinof  aeainst  the  Holy  Catholic  Church.  I  told  him 
in  the  little  Spanish  I  knew  that  I  had  not  been  fighting  at 
all,  but  was  only  a  Canadian  artist. 

" '  Then  the  sooner  you  get  out  of  this  country  the 
better.' 

"  '  But  I  cannot,'  I  replied,  '  I  have  lost  everything  and 
have  no  money.' 

"  To  which  he  sternly  answered,  though  he  had  heard  I 
had  been  talking  against  the  Church,  yet  in  consideration  of 
my  youth  he  would  not  have  me  shot  if  I  left  Mexico  within 
fifteen  days.  Later  he  relented  a  little  more,  and  ordered 
a  horse  and  saddle  to  be  given  me. 

"With  a  heavy  heart,  but  glad  to  be  still  alive,  I  started 
for  Aguas  Calientes,  where  the  American  Consul,  William 
Banks,  offered  me  protection,  and  promised  to  try  and  get 
back  my  worldly  possessions." 

A  few  days  later  young  Green  was  again  taken  prisoner 
by  Miramon.  This  proved  the  turning  point  in  his  career. 
He  escaped,  presented  himself  to  Vidaury,  the  Liberal 
General  fighting  on  the  side  of  Juarez,  and  was  immediately 
offered  a  post  in  the  Cavalry.  Naturally  the  adventurous 
boy  became  fired  with  enthusiasm,  and  turned  aside  from  the 
artistic  career  for  which  he  had  been  trained  to  the  exciting 
life  of  a  soldier,  and  not  only  a  soldier,  but  one  who  was 
destined  to  see  years  of  bloody  warfare,  and  play  his  part  in 
history. 

Colonel  Green  was  the  only  English  officer  in  the 
Mexican  army,  and  although  a  Briton  in  appearance,  is 
thoroughly  Mexican  in  sentiment. 

At  the  time  young  Green  joined,  the  management  of  an 
army  was  a  very  different  affair  from  what  it  is  now.  There 
were  no  railways,  and  enormous  distances  had  to  be 
traversed  on  foot  or  on  horseback.  The  army  lived  upon 
what  they  could  pick  up,  and  the  soldiers'  women  folk,  acting 
as  a  Commissariat  body,  scoured  the  country  on   the  line  of 


266  MEXICO  AS   1   SAW  IT. 

march,  raided  the  ranches  and  villages,  taking  what  they 
needed  in  the  way  of  food.  At  the  end  of  the  day's  march, 
the  soldiers'  wives  would  have  tortillas  and  stews  ready, 
which  were  much  appreciated  both  by  tired  officers  and  men. 

The  war  of  Reform  lasted  over  three  years,  and  many 
sacrificed  their  lives  for  the  liberty  of  their  country. 

In  1865,  a  year  after  Maximilian  was  crowned  Emperor, 
Colonel  Green  went  to  San  Francisco  on  a  Government 
commission,  to  procure  a  band  of  volunteers  to  aid  Juarez, 
who  had  overthrown  the  religious  orders  two  years  pre- 
viously. He  was  absent  for  eight  months,  during  which 
time  he  enrolled  and  incorporated  eighty-seven  fine  stalwart 
American  officers,  who  were  banded  together  under  the 
name  of  the  Legion  of  Honour,  with  him  as  their  Colonel. 
They  accomplished  a  marvellous  -ride.  It  is  nearly  three 
thousand  miles  from  San  Francisco  to  the  City  of  Mexico 
through  El  Passo,  and  yet  these  men  covered  this  distance 
in  seventy  days,  without  changing  horses  ! 

They  fought  against  the  French  in  four  or  five  minor 
skirmishes  on  the  road,  and  after  joining  General  Juarez' 
force,  succeeded  in  putting  the  French  to  flight. 

It  was  just  at  this  time  that  the  army  heard  of  the 
assassination  of  President  Lincoln  at  Washington,  which 
formed  the  subject  of  conversation  for  many  nights  round 
camp  fires.  The  programme  then  changed.  The  United 
States  Government  suddenly  ordered  the  French  to  evacuate 
Mexico. 

Petty  wars  were  devastating  the  land,  neither  life  nor 
property  was  safe  ;  tumult  reigned.  Poor  Maximilian, 
though  charming  in  himself,  had  shown  his  weakness  all 
too  plainly.  Napoleon  III.  was  no  longer  willing  to 
support  the  man  he  had  chosen. 

Thus  it  came  about  that  under  the  pressure  of  W.  H. 
Seward  of  the  United  States,  and  Benito  Juarez  of  Mexico, 
the    French    in    1867    agreed    to    evacuate,    provided    the 


THE  EMPEROR   MAXIMILIAN.  267 

United  States  Government  would  protect  them  during 
the  evacuation.  This  being  agreed  to,  the  French 
departed,  leaving  Maximilian  behind  them. 

An  Austrian  frigate  had  been  sent  to  convey  the 
Emperor  home,  but  Maximilian,  who  at  first  decided  to 
leave,  was  met  at  Orizaba  by  Bazaine,  who  persuaded  him 
he  could  not  quit  the  country  without  abdicating. 

While  waiting  at  Orizaba  for  their  ships,  seven  Mexican 
generals,  namely,  Mirmon,  Mejia,  Marques,  Mendez, 
Castillio,  Cortez  and  Moran,  approached  Maximilian. 
They  assured  him  that  if  he  would  remain  behind  with 
his  eleven  thousand  Austrian  soldiers  and  three  thou- 
sand Belgians,  they  would  each  of  them  agree  to  furnish 
five  thousand  followers  fully  armed  and  equipped,  and 
establish  an  empire  without  the  aid  of  any  government. 
Unfortunately  Maximilian  listened  to  them. 

Carlotta  was  opposed  to  the  plan,  and  did  her  utmost  to 
dissuade  him  from  it,  but  in  vain.  He  had  given  up  his 
birthright  before  leaving  Austria,  and  if  he  returned  it 
would  be  as  an  Emperor  without  an  Empire.  He 
hesitated,  and  ultimately  consented  to  remain  in  his  adopted 
country.  He  retraced  his  way  westward,  thus  taking  the 
first  step  to  his  tragic  end  at  Oueretaro,  while  Bazaine 
returned  to  France,  and  there  met  the  sad  destiny  which 
awaited  him  at  Metz. 

Carlotta  proceeded  alone  to  Europe,  with  the  view  ot 
obtaining  assistance  for  her  husband.  First  she  went  to 
Paris,  where,  to  her  surprise,  she  was  not  met  at  the 
station  by  her  old  friend  Napoleon  III.  Next  day  she 
drove  out  to  St.  Cloud  with  one  Mexican  lady  attendant, 
and  sought  an  audience  with  the  Emperor  of  France. 
He  received  her  coldly.  She  told  her  story,  he  listened, 
regretted  he  had  done  all  he  could  for  Maximilian,  and 
declared  he  could  do  no  more.  Finally,  with  tears  in  her 
eyes,  she  begged  his  aid.      He  refused  peremptorily. 


268  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

Indignantly  she  turned  upon  him,  exclaiming  : 

"  Fool,  fool  that  I  was  to  lower  my  royal  house  by 
begging  to  a  plebeian  upstart,"  or  words  to  that  effect. 

It  was  her  parting  shot.  "She  left  his  presence  a 
crushed  woman,"  said  my  informant,  and  with  her 
companion  drove  back  to  Paris.  From  that  time  the 
Empress  became  a  changed  person,  mentally  and  bodily  a 
wreck,  by  turns  silent  and  hysterical.  The  strain  had  been 
too  great.  She  appealed  to  the  Pope  ;  he  could  not  help 
her.  Finally  she  had  recourse  to  her  father,  the  King  of 
the  Belgians,  who  ordered  out  three  battalions  of  troops 
which  were,  however,  stopped  by  the  United  States  vessels, 
and  thus  the  unfortunate  Maximilian  was  cut  off  from  all 
outside  assistance.  This  worried  the  poor  dethroned  lady 
to  such  an  extent  that  she  completely  broke  down.  Utter 
mental  collapse  ensued,  from  which  she  has  never  recovered. 
Even  now  she  often  thinks  herself  Empress  of  Mexico,  and 
plays  in  comedy  the  role  she  sustained  in  tragedy.  Carlotta 
waited  for  her  husband's  return  ;  day  after  day  she  looked 
for  him,  but  she  never  saw  him  ao-ain,  and  it  is  said  that  in 
her  European  home  she  still  believes  he  is  alive.  A  brave 
life  wrecked,  a  true  woman  sacrificed,  and  all  for  what  } 

Although  Maximilian  was  responsible  for  much  bloodshed 
and  misery,  yet  the  ruin  of  his  cause  was  practically  begun 
before  he  ever  set  foot  In  Mexico,  for  the  exchequer  was  in 
a  lamentable  state,  and  money — which  forms  the  sinews  of 
war — was  sadly  deficient.  The  Emperor  bravely  adhered 
to  the  vows  he  had  taken  at  Miramar  ere  accepting  the 
crown  of  Mexico,  but  when  forsaken  by  the  French  his 
position  was  hopeless. 

After  Carlotta  left  Mexico,  Maximilian  and  his  seven 
generals  led  their  army  to  the  City.  Colonel  Green, 
then  in  the  northern  part  of  the  present  Republic,  was,  at 
the  battle  of  San  Jacinto,  where  the  Imperial  troops  were 
defeated,  able  to  save  General  Juarez  from  capture. 


THE  EMPEROR  MAXIMILIAN.  269 

Maximilian,  learning  the  sad  defeat  of  the  Imperial  army, 
hurried  to  its  assistance  with  all  the  forces  he  could  com- 
mand, and  fortified  himself  at  the  town  of  Oueretaro,  where 
the  Liberal  army  from  the  west  under  General  Corona, 
General  Huerta,  and  the  Legion  of  Honour  succeeded  in 
surrounding  him. 

Reinforced  by  the  army  from  Northern  Mexico,  under 
General  Escobedo,  the  united  forces  of  Juarez  met 
Maximilian  and  his  Imperial  forces  at  Oueretaro,  where 
a  great  battle  was  fought,  and  after  a  siege  of  eighty-seven 
days  Maximilian  and  his  generals  surrendered. 

In  May,  1867,  the  Imperialists  were  defeated  at  all 
points.  Then  it  was  that  Maximilian's  spirit  began  to  fail. 
The  succour  he  had  expected  from  Europe  did  not  come. 
On  the  14th  of  the  month  he  sent  Lopez  to  General 
Escobedo  to  say  he  wished  to  leave  with  fifty  picked 
horsemen  for  Tampico,  and  thence  embark  for  Europe. 
He  would  let  the  town  surrender  at  once  if  his  own  safety 
were  guaranteed. 

Escobedo  indignantly  refused,  and  immediately  ordered  a 
general  assault. 

After  much  bloodshed  Maximilian  realised  the  utter 
hopelessness  of  his  position,  and  apparently  lost  his  head, 
for  he  rushed  about  alone,  begging  everyone  for  horses 
and  help.  He  was  many  times  fired  upon,  but  never  really 
wounded. 

Seizing  a  handkerchief  he  tied  it  to  his  riding-whip  as  a 
flag  of  truce,  and  started  dow^n  the  slope  of  the  Cerro  de  las 
Campanas,  where  he  met  Colonel  Green,  the  officer  com- 
manding the  Legion  of  Honour. 

"He  was  disheartened,"  said  the  Colonel,  "  and  nervous. 
His  lips  were  trembling,  he  looked  ill  and  wan,  but  withal 
showed  himself  a  noble  and  gallant  soldier." 

"  I  surrender,"  he  murmured. 

"  You  must  surrender  to  General  Escobedo." 


2/0  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

"  No,  no,  not  to  him — to  you  or  to  General  Corona !  " 

"  Calm  yourself,"  replied  the  Canadian  colonel.  "  I  have 
a  letter  from  my  brother  at  Washington  in  my  pocket,  and 
he  tells  me  the  American  Government  has  interceded  for 
your  life." 

These  words  came  as  a  great  relief  to  the  unfortunate 
Emperor,  and  a  flash  of  joy  illumined  his  face,  but  it  was 
only  momentary. 

By  this  time  General  Corona  had  arrived,  and  standing 
aside,  Colonel  Green  beckoned  to  Maximilian  to  surrender 
formally  to  his  superior  officer. 

"  I  am  Maximilian,  Emperor  of  Mexico,"  he  pulled  him- 
self together  sufficiently  to  say,  as  he  presented  his  sword 
to  Corona. 

"You  are  a  Mexican  citizen  and  my  prisoner,"  was  the 
stern  reply  of  his  captor. 

The  Emperor  was  tried  and  condemned  to  be  shot, 
together  with  his  two  faithful  generals  Mejia  and  Miramon. 
He  was  judged  a  traitor  for  having  acted  with  Napoleon  IIL 
to  rob  Mexico  of  her  independence. 

One  month  later  (June  19,  1867)  these  three  were  led 
forth  for  execution  to  a  small  hill,  about  a  mile  and  a  half 
distant  from  the  city  known  as  the  Cerro  de  las  Campanas. 
The  two  generals  fell  at  the  first  volley,  but  Maximilian 
required  a  second  round.  Three  little  crosses  were  put  up 
to  mark  the  spot  which  ended  French  rule  in  Mexico. 
Thirty-three  years  later  an  insignificant  chapel  was  erected 
by  the  Emperor  Francis  Joseph  to  commemorate  the 
tragedy,  and  in  April,  1901,  an  envoy  was  sent  from  Austria 
represented  by  Prince  Khevenhueller  and  Prince  Fuersten- 
berg,  to  formally  open  the  chapel. 

When  General  Diaz  heard  this  he  determined  to  do  them 
all  honour,  and  sent  his  own  special  train  to  meet  the  party  at 
Vera  Cruz.  It  was  a  pretty  act  of  courtesy.  Maximilian's 
successor  honouring  the  memory  of  his  Imperial  adversary  ! 


THE  EMPEROR   MAXIMILIAN.  271 

Diaz  can  be  hard,  but  Diaz  can  also  be  kind.  Out  of  his 
chivalrous  courtesy,  received  in  an  equally  friendly  spirit  by 
the  Austrians,  developments  have  ensued,  and  negotiations 
been  entered  into  between  Mexico  and  Austria,  which  only 
thirty  years  ago  were  deadly  foes.  This  is  yet  another 
instance  of  the  successful  diplomacy  of  the  President  of 
Mexico. 

With  the  death  of  Maximilian  ended  one  of  the  most 
tragic  episodes  in  modern  history.  At  the  time,  many 
people  blamed  him  for  listening  to  the  overtures  of 
Napoleon  III.  Be  this  as  it  may,  the  whole  record  is 
fraught  with  pathetic  sadness,  and  one  cannot  but  feel 
regret  that  a  happy  life,  which  had  hitherto  been  a  useful 
one,  should  have  been  sacrificed  to  the  ambition  of  a  man 
who  in  the  hour  of  need  forsook  his  friend,  and  literally 
betrayed  him  into  the  hands  of  his  enemies. 

Another  of  the  people  I  had  the  pleasure  of  meeting  in 
Mexico,  who  has  lived  in  the  history  of  the  country,  was 
Madame  Degollado,  at  one  time  Lady-in-Waiting  to  the 
Empress  Carlotta. 

A  Virginia  girl,  she  was  brought  up  to  the  saddle,  and 
while  still  in  her  teens  married  a  Spanish  Mexican,  who 
shortly  afterwards  was  appointed  Chamberlain  to  the 
Emperor  Maximilian. 

Madame  Degollado  is  now  a  handsome  woman  with 
white  hair  and  fine  carriage.  It  is  easy  to  imagine  she  was 
a  beautiful  girl,  and  quickly  found  favour  with  the  Empress 
Carlotta,  to  whom  she  became  a  constant  attendant.  As 
she  was  the  only  horsewoman  among  the  Court — for  the 
ladies  in  Mexico  rode  even  less  then  than  now — while  the 
Empress  was  devoted  to  the  saddle,  the  two  naturally  spent 
much  of  their  time  together.  "  Carlotta,"  who  was  then 
about  twenty-four,  never  drove  when  she  could  ride,  and 
as  there  were  no  railways,  all  her  expeditions  were 
accomplished  on  horseback. 


2/2  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

"  Such  a  handsome  woman,"  said  Madame  Degollado, 
"  very  tall,  exceptionally  tall  and  thin,  with  great  grace  of 
movement.  Haughty  and  proud  in  manner,  some  people 
feared  her  ;  but  she  had  the  kindest  of  hearts,  never 
neglected  a  duty,  was  faithful  in  her  friendships,  and 
always  thoughtful  for  others." 

"  What  did  she  do  all  day  ?  "  I  enquired. 
"  We  rode  generally  every  morning,  and  then  she  spent 
hours  and  hours  over  the  State  papers.  I  never  saw  such 
an  industrious  woman  in  my  life.  She  read  a  great  deal, 
besides  conducting  all  the  correspondence  with  the  crowned 
heads  of  Europe.  For  her  amusement  she  sketched  and 
painted.  Both  she  and  the  Emperor  were  excellent 
Spanish  scholars,  and  she  spoke  wonderful  English.  In 
fact,  they  were  both  extraordinarily  fluent  linguists,  and  I 
remember  once  hearing  the  Emperor  say  he  thought  he 
knew  eleven  German  dialects  ! 

"  '  The  Empress  ought  to  have  been  the  man  and  I  the 
woman,'  he  once  laughingly  remarked.  '  She  prefers  the 
drum,  I  prefer  the  baton.' 

"  Had  he  lived,  Mexico  would  have  benefited  by  his 
taste  and  talent.  He  was  a  born  architect,  and  loved 
drawing  out  plans  ;  there  is  no  doubt  about  it,  he  would 
have  done  much  to  beautify  the  City.  The  Sokolo  was 
his  work,  while  the  Empress  founded  a  hospital  and  did 
many  things  of  the  same  kind." 

"  Was  she  happy  ?  "  I  asked. 

"  No,  I  think  not ;  in  the  first  place  the  grief  of  her  life 
was  not  having  a  child,  and  then  she  always  felt  the 
insecurity  of  the  Emperor's  position." 

Speaking  of  Cuernavaca  and  the  lovely  garden  where 
the  Imperial  pair  spent  so  much  of  their  time,  Madame 
Degollado  said  : 

"The  Empress  loved  that  beautiful  spot.  We  used 
constantly  to  ride  there.      By  the   mountain  passes  it  was 


THE   EMPEROR   MAXIMILIAN.        -  273 

only  a  distance  of  some  thirty  miles.  We  used  to  get  up 
very  early,  and  start  about  four  o'clock.  She  and  I  rode, 
accompanied  by  her  gentlemen  in  waiting,  and  the  Guardo 
de  Palatin  (Empress'  guard  of  about  one  hundred  and  fifty 
men).  Some  of  her  escort  always  went  on  ahead,  and  - 
pitched  the  tents  at  the  spot  where  we  were  to  stop  for 
luncheon  and  rest  during  the  heat  of  the  day. 

"It  was  quite  a  caravan,  and  a  very  necessary  one,  for  in 
those  days,  robbery  was  an  everyday  occurrence,  and  not 
only  did  the  bandits  stop  the  diligences,  but  they  often 
stripped  passengers  of  their  very  clothes.' 

When  I  asked  Madame  Degollado  if  she  had  ever 
experienced  such    an  adventure,  she  answered  : 

"  Oh,  yes,  nine  times  I  have  been  in  large  or  small 
robberies  by  the  roadside." 

A  halt  was  called  for  the  royal  cortege  for  luncheon,  and 
the  carriages  with  the  ladies-in-waiting,  devoutly  telling 
their  beads  in  gratitude  for  having  proceeded  so  far  on  their 
perilous  journey  in  safety,  would  arrive,  likewise  the  servants 
and  luggage. 

Madame  Degollado  has  a  beautiful  house,  which  con- 
tains many  interesting  relics  of  those  unhappy  Imperial 
days.  Perhaps  the  most  interesting  of  all  is  the  least 
connected  with  Maximilian,  which  sounds  somewhat  like 
an  Irishism.  It  is  Cortes'  own  desk.  Father  Fisher, 
a  German,  and  Confessor  to  the  Ernperor,  gave  it  to 
her ;  it  is  truly  wonderful.  Outside  it  resembles  a 
miniature  bureau,  or  large  desk  of  inlaid  wood,  and  round 
the  key  on  a  silver  plate  are  the  arms  of  Cortes.  For- 
merly it  was  studded  with  silver  nails,  but  these  have  been 
picked  out.  Inside  it  is  Chinese,  and  not  only  Chinese, 
but  a  Chinese  puzzle  !  It  is  lacquered  scarlet,  and  painted, 
and  every  corner  contains  a  secret  drawer.  There  are 
literally  dozens  of  them,  so  many  that  it  seems  impossible 
anyone  could  ever  have    made   such    an    ingenious  affair. 

18 


274  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

False  bottoms  are  endless.  It  is  certainly  a  curiosity. 
Beside  it  stands  a  beautiful  bust  of  Humboldt,  by  an 
Italian,  which  always  occupied  a  place  in  Maximilian's 
study,  for  he  was  an  earnest  admirer  of  the  great  German 
traveller.  There  is  also  a  gem  of  a  crucifix  in  ivory, 
given  by  the  Pope  to  Maximilian  to  hold  in  his  hand  when 
he  went  to  Rome,  in  1864,  while  being  blessed  before  going 
out  to  Mexico.  It  bears  the  papal  arms  in  gold,  as  well  as 
the  royal  crest,  and  the  Pope  presented  it  to  the  Emperor 
as  a  souvenir  of  the  occasioa 

Perhaps  the  saddest  little  relic  of  all  is  a  pillow-case 
used  by  the  Emperor  on  the  last  night  he  slept  in 
Mexico  City.  It  is  made  of  finest  lawn  with  lace  insertion, 
and  the  Royal  Crown  embroidered  on  it.  The  centre  is 
mounted  on  pale  blue  silk.  What  pathetic  trifles  they 
are,  reminding  one  of  a  sadly  misunderstood  and  troubled 
life! 


A  ride  on  an  engine. 


Native  huts  on  Canon  to  Tampico. 


To  face  pat^c  275.] 


V5 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

TAMPICO  CANON  ON  AN  ENGINE. 

Mexico  is  full  of  new  experiences  ;  a  ride  on  an  engine 
proved  certainly  one  to  a  London  dame. 

I  have  never  been  nearer  to  the  Rocky  Mountains  than 
when  at  Niagara  in  the  North,  and  Durango — which  is 
really  on  the  Southern  spur  of  that  gigantic  range — in  the 
South  ;  but  people  who  know  both  districts  declare  that  the 
railway  track  from  Cardenas  to  Tampico  in  Mexico  passes 
through  as  fine  canons  as  any  in  the  Rockies. 

This  is  the  tierra  caliente,  or  tropical  climate  of  Mexico. 
Roughly  speaking,  that  climate  must  be  divided  into  two 
sections  ;  the  northern  district  being  about  as  warm  as 
Italy,  and  the  southern  half  quite  tropical.  The  high 
altitudes  lying  between  these  two  districts  are  colder  in  pro- 
portion to  their  height. 

Zacatecas  is  8,967  feet  above  the  sea,  therefore  chilly  ; 
but  our  train  ran  down  that  enormous  descent  to  Tampico 
on  the  coast,  where  the  temperature  is  tropical.  Nine 
thousand  feet  is  no  mean  drop  for  a  railway  track,  and 
the  last  four  hours  of  that  rapid  journey  were  most  exciting. 

The  beginning  of  the  Canon  de  Guerero  is  sometimes 
called  the  Canon  of  Tamasopo.  Our  car  was  specially  run 
down  by  engine  No.  13,  in  which  number,  according  to 
superstition,  there  ought  to  be  bad  luck.  However, 
nothing  dreadful  happened. 

The  scenery  at  first  might  almost  have  been  in  Scotland  ; 

18* 


276  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

bare  rugged  hills  and  stone  walls  were  to  be  seen.  Then 
began  a  series  of  cuttings,  round  and  round  which  the  line 
twisted,  till  the  descent  was  actually  discernible  from  the 
car.  The  country  as  we  proceeded  became  more  fertile  ; 
and  the  land  afforded  good  pasture  for  cattle. 

After  a  rapid  descent  we  saw  below  us  a  large  opening 
encircled  by  wooded  hills,  which  was  the  entrance  to  the 
caiion.  It  appeared  incredible,  for  the  sides  went  sheer 
down  as  if  into  a  basin,  yet  into  this  gorge  we  were  to 
descend.  By  a  circuitous  route  we  finally  dived  into  the 
pass,  and  then  for  fifteen  miles  or  so  we  passed  through 
most  beautiful  scenes,  each  more  lovely  and  wonderful  than 
the  last. 

Here  and  there  the  grey  stone  of  the  rocky  boulders 
looked  almost  like  castellated  towers  ;  the  precipices,  going 
sheer  down  for  several  hundred  feet  to  the  bubbling  little 
river  beneath,  made  one  hold  one's  breath.  There  in  the 
distance  a  round  black  hole  in  the  side  of  the  cliff,  denoted 
a  tunnel,  and  almost  before  we  had  grasped  the  fact,  we 
took  a  dive  into  Mother  Earth.  There  are  hardly  any 
tunnels  in  Mexico,  so  it  seemed  all  the  more  strange  to  pass 
through  a  regular  chain  of  them. 

At  one  moment  the  engine  and  the  last  car  formed  a 
complete  horse-shoe,  turned  and  looked  at  one  another 
in  fact,  as,  with  reversed  steam  and  wonderful  Westinghouse 
brakes,  we  held  on  our  downward  course  at  what  to  the 
uninitiated  mind  seemed  a  terrific  speed  !  At  another  time 
we  saw  six  of  our  own  tracks  zigzag  below  us,  so  cleverly 
did  the  road  wind  in  and  out  of  that  canon.  It  is  a  magni- 
ficent journey,  not  perhaps  so  gorgeous  as  that  on  the  Vera 
Cruz  line,  but  in  respect  of  vegetation  and  tropical  beauty 
far  more  lovely, 

A  curious  cut  in  the  rock,  which  drops  sheer  into  the 
river  below,  is  known  as  the  Devil's  Backbone  ;  but  the 
Devil's  Chasm  would  surely  be  a  more  appropriate  title. 


TAMP  ICO   CANON  ON  AN   ENGINE.  277 

All  along  the  sides  of  the  hills,  right  high  up  into  the 
thickly-wooded  mountains,  were  patches  of  brightest  green. 
These  were  sugar-cane,  which  grows  particularly  luxuriantly 
in  this  damp  tropical  region. 

"  How  is  it  possible  to  get  the  cane  down  to  the  mills 
in  the  valley  .-*  "  I  enquired,  there  being  no  road,  and  the 
sides  of  the  hill  almost  perpendicular. 

"  Men  carry  it  on  their  backs,"  was  the  astounding 
reply. 

Imagine  the  whole  produce  of  a  field  being  carried  down 
a  precipice,  but  it  is !  The  sugar-plants  were  in  bloom  as 
we  passed,  and  for  the  first  time  I  saw  their  soft  feathery 
purple  flowers,  which  somewhat  resemble  pampas  grass. 
Bananas  were  growing  in  patches  everywhere,  and  the 
banana  is  one  of  those  accommodating  plants  which  bear 
fruit  all  the  year  round.  Melon  trees  flourished  on  all 
sides  ;  indeed,  the  tangled  jungle  seemed  to  conceal  almost 
every    kind    of  tropical  plant  and  shrub. 

The  engine-driver  told  us,  only  the  day  before,  a  fine 
buck  had  crossed  within  thirty  feet  of  his  engine,  and 
antelopes,  or  a  flight  of  turkeys  across  the  line  are  events  of 
every-day  occurrence.  We  were  in  the  land  of  monkeys 
— Micos,  meaning  monkey,  was  the  name  of  the  next 
station  ;  they  do  not  often  come  right  on  the  rails,  although 
they  chatter  incessantly  a  few  hundred  yards  distance  from 
the  track. 

Tall  feathery-looking  plants  grew  all  about  ;  they  looked 
like  giant  asparagus  fern — giant  indeed,  when  they  were 
often  sixty  feet  in  length !  These  were  bamboos,  which 
abound  in  the  jungle  of  primeval  forest — their  native  heath, 
so  to  speak. 

The  work-people's  huts  were  made  of  bamboo,  but  not 
bamboo  fastened  quite  close  together,  oh,  dear  no  !  A  bam- 
boo rod  here,  and  another  at  least  an  inch  away,  so  that  from 
outside    we    could    see    right    through    these    tumble-down 


278  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

dwellings,  with  their  palm-leaved  thatched  roofs.  This 
meant  plenty  of  ventilation,  no  doubt,  and  consequent  health. 
But  hardly  privacy  or  comfort.  Still,  we  were  in  the  tropics, 
and  one  must  not  measure  the  half-clad  ladies  and  gentlemen 
of  those  regions,  the  naked  children  scampering  about  or  riding 
on  pigs,  with  the  cold-blooded  inhabitants  of  northern  climes. 

Women  were  washing  in  the  stream,  and  one  good 
house-wife  had  gathered  up  her  cotton  skirt  to  the  waist, 
and  was  dancing  on  her  clothes  in  a  tub  to  clean  them, 
just  in  the  same  way  that  we  have  often  seen  a  Highland 
lassie  do  in  Scotland.  Another  was  stripped  to  the  waist 
as  she  knelt  beside  a  stream  to  wash,  having  removed  her 
bodice,  that  it  might  not  get  splashed.  It  was  all  very 
picturesque,  charming,  and  quaint  ;  the  dark  olive  skin  of 
the  people,  the  bright  colouring  of  their  clothes,  the  naked- 
ness of  the  children,  and  the  gorgeous  tropical  vegetation, 
were  all  so  different  to  anything  ever  seen  in   Britain. 

A  fine  Ceiva  tree  reared  its  stately  head  amongst  the 
tall  palms,  so  straight  and  majestic  that  it  seemed  to  say 
sadly  : 

"Here  I  am,  cut  me  down  and  make  your  'dug-out' 
canoe  from  me  ;  I'm  ready." 

The  tall  palms  were  in  groves,  the  blackness  of  their 
charred  stems — for  part  of  the  jungle  had  been  cleared  by 
fire — being  noticeable  ;  below  were  millions  of  those  smaller 
palms  for  which  we  pay  at  the  rate  of  a  guinea  each,  to  orna- 
ment our  English  drawing-rooms.  In  Mexico  they  grow  in 
wild  profusion,  only  waiting  to  be  dug  up.  How  badly  some 
things  appear  to  be  distributed  ;  those  palms,  just  wasted 
where  they  are,  would  be  so  much  appreciated  elsewhere  ! 

Mimosa  in  flower,  red  pepper  plants,  castor-oil  vines, 
were  twining  round  everything  and  climbing  everywhere. 
Endless  creepers  and  mosses  were  hanging  from  the  trees, 
while  below  lay  patches  of  thick  jungle  such  as  one  reads  of 
in  books  on  Africa.      We  had  left  the  cactus  and  maguey 


TAMP  ICO    CANON  ON  AN  ENGINE.  279 

plants  behind  in  the  drier,  higher,  and  therefore  colder, 
altitudes  which  surround  Mexico  City  ;  and  now  we  were 
enjoying  tropical  vegetation  and  tropical  temperature,  which 
increased  with  every  thousand  feet  we  descended.  The 
heat  was  so  great  no  one  had  an  appetite  for  luncheon  ; 
pickles  and  stewed  peaches  were  the  only  articles  in  demand, 
in  spite  of  the  delicacies  provided  on  the  car. 

Hawks  were  flying  over-head — to  us  they  seemed  out  of 
place  in  the  tropics.  Muscovy  ducks  paddled  in  the  water, 
and  crocodiles  were  not  far  off. 

Several  times  a  flight  of  egrets  crossed  our  track,  green 
parrots  chattered  in  the  woods,  and  we  occasionally  saw  a 
dozen  bound  together  by  a  string  attached  to  the  foot,  in 
front  of  the  peasants'  huts.  The  children  were  all  un- 
clothed— such  funny  little  black  things  they  were,  and  as 
they  squatted  on  their  hind-quarters  they  looked  just  like 
frogs,  big,  fat,  round  frogs !  The  only  time  they  wear 
anything  is  when  they  go  to  church,  and  then  they  adorn 
themselves  with  a  hat  ! 

Here  and  there  patches  of  heliotrope  carpeted  the  ground, 
and  we  felt  transported  to  fairy  regions,  to  some  strange  land 
where  dwarf  races  might  dwell,  or  baboons  walk  forth.  The 
lion  and  the  panther  live  in  that  neighbourhood,  and  are 
often  seen   by  people   working  on   the  line. 

There  was  no  dust  ;  imagine  any  place  in  Mexico 
without  dust — the  joy  of  it — but  here,  there  being  actually 
no  visible  earth,  vegetation  is  so  thick  dust  cannot  rise.         \ 

The  track  is  wonderful  from  an  engineering  point  of 
view  ;  the  descent  of  the  canon  makes  many  people  sick 
and  dizzy.  We  passed  several  gangs  of  track  menders, 
for  the  enormous  engines  necessary  to  pull  those  heavy 
freight  trains  up  from  the  port  of  Tampico  knock  the 
road  about,  and  in  the  rainy  season  floods  and  avalanches 
damage  it  still  more.  The  road  is  splendidly  laid  ;  the  steel 
rails,  of   English   make,   embedded   in   rocky   flints,   are  set 


28o  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

high  in  order  to  avoid  wash-outs.  There  was  a  lovely  series 
of  cataracts  along  our  route  ;  for  about  half  a  mile  the  river 
descended  by  bounds  and  leaps. 

It  was  an  ideal  time  of  year  for  travelling,  namely, 
January  ;  summer  is  the  season  when  rain  falls  as  if 
the  sluices  of  heaven  were  opened.  These  floods  are 
good  for  the  country  in  many  ways,  as  the  climate  of 
Tampico  does  not  vary  much,  but  not  for  travelling.  It  is 
always  tropical,  and  the  summer  rains  keep  the  temperature 
almost  at  the  usual  winter  heat,  although  when  two  or  three 
really  dry  days  come  in  summer,  it  must  be  terrible. 

One  day  we  mounted  a  couple  of  hand  cars  at  a  small 
wayside  station  ;  it  was  a  lovely  morning,  the  dew  was  still 
on  the  trees,  everything  felt  bright  and  invigorating,  and 
clouds  were  still  hiding  the  higher  hills. 

Away  we  sped,  the  pace  was  rapid,  and  as  there  was 
nothing  to  hold  by,  and  only  a  small  foot-board,  we  felt 
we  must  go  over  as  we  swung  round  corners  and  looked 
down  precipices  into  rocky  river  beds  below.  Indeed,  we 
passed  over  one  bridge  where,  peering  down  between  the 
sleepers,  we  saw  an  enormous  chasm  lying  five  hundred 
feet  beneath !  What  a  view  we  had  as  we  turned  a  bend 
of  the  snake-like  track  !  A  valley  at  least  a  hundred  miles 
in  diameter  lay  before  us  ;  the  sun  was  up  in  all  his  glory, 
the  tropical  heat  was  on  us,  and  the  colours  lovely  ! 

At  the  Cathedral  cave — La  Ventana — we  stopped,  and 
scrambled  up  some  primitive  rocky  staircases  into  the  cavern 
itself.  As  we  entered  a  flock  of  green  parrots  flew  out 
with  a  shriek  ;  we  had  disturbed  them  in  their  home. 

The  natives  make  great  pets  of  their  parrots,  especially 
the  smaller  green  ones.  They  clip  one  wing,  and  then  let 
the  bird  perch  anywhere  upon  them  ;  we  often  saw  men  and 
women  with  a  parrot  sitting  on  their  head  or  shoulder. 
They  walked  about  and  did  their  work,  but  the  parrot  still 
clung  to  them,  a  faithful   friend  and  companion.      Even    in 


A  couple  of  hand-cars. 


A  native  vine  bridtje. 


[  To  face  page  280. 


TAMP  ICO   CANON  ON  AN  ENGINE.  281 

the  towns  we  have  seen  parrots  sitting  on  men's  hats  in 
tram-cars.  A  strange  weird  chant  issued  from  a  corner  of 
the  cavern  the  parrots  had  just  left. 

"What  on  earth  is  that?"  I  enquired,  still  bewildered 
with  their  shrieks. 

"  Felipe  learning  his  catechism  for  the  priest,"  was  the 
reply,  and  so  it  was,  for  we  afterwards  saw  one  of  our  hand 
car  men  of  some  thirty  summers,  sitting,  his  head  bent  over 
his  tiny  volume,  struggling  to  learn  by  heart  the  catechism 
he  could  only  read  with  difficulty. 

The  caves  form  a  series  of  fine  chambers,  and  several 
curious  stalactites  and  stalagmites  are  there,  one  of  which 
exactly  resembles  a  crouching  monkey,  another  an  old  man. 
A  green-coloured  stalagmite  in  the  middle  must  have 
measured  some  fifteen  or  sixteen  feet  high,  and  as  much  in 
circumference.  But  the  most  interesting  part  to  me  was 
the   trees.      The   cavern   has  lioht   holes   here  and  there  at 

o 

the  top,  and  through  these  apertures  vines  and  tendrils  have 
come  down.  Some  are  there  now,  just  light  and  feathery 
tracery.  Others,  as  they  strengthened  and  reached  the 
earth,  thirty  or  forty  feet  below,  have  taken  root.  Not  only 
that,  but  fine  trees  have  grown  from  these  saplings,  the  roots 
being  well  spread  over  the  cavern  below,  while  the  trunks 
look  black  like  the  masts  of  a  ship  in  the  dim  light,  and 
through  the  openings  foliage  struggles  from  the  dark  cave  into 
the  light  beyond  in  its  endeavour  to  kiss  the  passing  clouds. 

The  effect  is  extraordinary.  It  is  hard  to  understand  how 
these  big  trees  live  in  such  dark  mystery  while  the  tender 
shoots  above  enjoy  the  glorious  sunshine  of  the  day. 

We  tumbled  down  the  steps  again,  and  so  back  to  our 
hand-car  and  off  we  sped  to  the  second  cavern  ;  this  was 
down  the  side  of  the  mountain  and  totally  different  from  the 
other.  Choy  cave  has  a  river  of  deep  dark-blue  water  at  its 
base.  Friends  have  bathed  therein — but  they  owned  it  was 
wondrous  cold — they  swam  into  that  black  opening  yonder, 


282  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

until  all  grew  so  dark  and  mysterious  they  were  fain  to  turn 
back  again  to  the  light.  Some  day,  perchance,  a  boat  may 
penetrate  that  gloomy  depth  ;  in  the  meantime  the  cave  is 
far  from  the  haunts  of  men.  Its  one  entrance  towards  the 
light  reminded  me  of  the  glimpse  of  the  open  sea  from 
Fingall's  Cave,  Scotland. 

Hard  by  are  some  wonderful  sulphur  springs,  where  the 
natives  who  suffer  from  rheumatism  and  various  skin 
diseases  repair,  but  they  also  are  comparatively  little 
known.  Perhaps,  a  few  years  hence,  they  may  become 
a  fashionable  health  resort  with  a  fine  hotel — who  knows  ? 
At  any  rate,  no  more  lovely  spot  could  be  found  than  this 
part  of  the  railway  line  between  the  great  Cafion  de 
Guerero,  and  Tampico. 

Before  returnino;  to  our  trollv-car  we  walked  throuQ-h  the 
tunnel,  as  it  was  considered  safer  to  do  so,  and  only  those 
who  have  travelled  in  a  hand-car  down  such  a  zigzag  road 
know  how  near  one  is  to  danoer  all  the  time.  The 
entrance  to  that  tunnel  was  wonderful  —  being  partly 
shaded  with  maiden-hair  fern  almost  as  thick  as  bracken 
is  in  Scotland,  though,  of  course,  it  does  not  grow  so  high, 
and  most  of  our  hot-house  plants  and  flowers  were  blooming 
there  just  as  it  seemed  for  their  own  pleasure,  since  passers- 
by  were  few  and  far  between. 

Butterflies  of  every  variety  hovered  in  the  air,  and  wild 
bees  made  their  honey  in  the  caves  or  the  roots  of  trees. 

At  Cafetal,  the  most  dangerous  part  of  that  magnificent 
descent  was  over,  and  the  extra  man  who  had  manipulated 
the  back  brakes  of  the  train  took  his  departure. 

We  stopped  at  the  station — a  couple  of  houses  would  be 
a  more  appropriate  term  ! — and  walked  down  some  three 
hundred  steps  to  see  the  waterfall  below.  Here  were  more 
melons,  with  hard  black  pips,  on  trees — great  tall  high  trees 
— coffee  plants,  with  their  ripe  red  berries,  shaded  by 
plantains,  tangled  creepers  falling  from  the  boughs  of  the 


TAMPICO    CANON  ON  AN  ENGINE.  283 

trees  in  veritable  fringes  and  planting  themselves  again  in 
Mother  Earth  ;  wonderful  grey  moss  that  seemed  to  grow 
by  the  yard  and  by  the  ton  ;  large  fronds  of  maidenhair 
fern  were  nestling  along  the  rocks,  splendid  red-leaved 
plants  here,  large  green  velvety-leaved  ones  there ;  red 
trumpet  flowers,  while  various  species  of  orchids  clung  to 
the  trunks  of  the  trees.  To  see  all  the  things  we  know  in 
conservatories  at  home,  growing  wild  and  uncared-for, 
causes  one  to  realise  how  tropical  the  climate  in  the 
lowlands  of  Mexico  must  be. 

When  we  stood  on  Puente  de  Dios  (God's  Bridge)  a 
rocky  path  between  the  two  falls,  with  the  wonderful  blue 
water  flowing  beneath,  and  the  stalactites  hanging  around 
us,  we  felt  as  if  we  were  in  a  vapour  bath,  and  while 
ascending  those  three  hundred  steps,  understood  we  were 
really  in  the  tropics  ! 

As  we  approached  Tampico  we  were  going  so  directly 
east  that  the  sun  set  straight  behind  us,  actually  at  the 
vanishing  point  of  miles  of  long  straight  track. 

At  the  port  they  kindly  ran  our  car  down  to  the  bar, 
where  we  enjoyed  a  cool  sea  breeze  during  the  night,  and 
also  were  free  from  the  plague  of  the  tropics,  mosquitoes. 

What  will  be  the  future  of  Tampico  ?  It  stands  on  a 
river  up  which  large  ocean  steamers  can  pass  ;  it  has  just 
completed  the  erection  of  one  of  the  most  beautiful  Custom 
Houses  imaginable,  a  building  of  which  the  Liverpool  Docks 
might  well  be  proud.  It  is  constructing  a  wharf  of  solid 
stone,  about  half  a  mile  long  ;  indeed  it  is  preparing  the  way 
for  becoming  one  of  the  world's  greatest  sea  ports.  Ships 
drawing  twenty-three  feet  of  water  can  easily  anchor  in  its 
harbour. 

And  there,  among  the  shipping,  we  actually  saw  those 
enormous  fish  called  tarpon  gaily  disporting  themselves,  a 
fish  to  catch  which  men  travel  half  over  the  world.  Our 
thoughts  turned  immediately  to  our  delightful   host  during 


284  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

many  pleasant  days  in  Philadelphia,  Horace  Howard 
Furness,  one  of  the  greatest  scholars  and  most  courtly 
gentlemen  in  the  United  States,  who  turns  from  his 
Shakespearean  studies  to  catch  tarpon  in  Florida.  What  a 
pity  he  was  not  with  us  at  Tampico  to  land  some  of 
those  splendid  gentlemen  frolicking  like  whales  in  the  water. 

Tampico  is  likely  to  become  an  important  place.  The 
river  Panuco  is  half  a  mile  wide,  and  the  new  jetties  have 
made  entry  possible  at  all  times.  There  is  a  low  sandy 
coast  line,  where  there  would  be  excellent  bathing  but  for  the 
numerous  sharks,  and  where  golf  links  could  easily  be  made. 
Pelicans  walk  across  the  sands,  and  devil-fish  fly  over- 
head. 

We  had  a  delightful  day  out  at  sea,  in  a  yacht,  to 
look  at  the  new  jetties  and  make  further  acquaintance 
with  the  tarpon,  and  then  ran  some  miles  up  the  river  in 
a  smaller  steam  launch,  kindly  entertained  by  Mr.  Bradley, 
the  superintendent  of  the  Mexican  Central  Railway. 

I  have  been  up  into  the  skies  in  a  balloon,  and  down  into 
the  earth  in  a  coal-pit  and  a  silver  mine,  but  I  had  never 
been  whirled   through  space   on  a  locomotive. 

I  had  often  wanted  to  ride  on  an  engine,  just  to  try  the 
effect  of  the  thing,  and  feeling  that  no  view  could  possibly 
look  more  beautiful  than  the  Canon  de  Guerero  from 
that  coign  of  vantage,  I  plucked  up  courage  and  asked  those 
in  authority  if  I  might  enjoy  this  novel  experience  on  the 
return  journey. 

"It  is  strictly  prohibited,"  was  the  reply,  "but  if  you 
really  mean  that  you  would  like  to  try  a  ride  on  the  engine 
— and  mind,  it  is  not  comfortable,  and  on  such  precipices 
as  there  are  about  here,  often  most  alarming — well,  we 
will  arrange  it." 

"  Splendid,  I'm  your  man !  "  was  my  somewhat  ungram- 
matical  and  incorrect  response. 

At    the    foot    of    the   famous    caiion    Mr.    Coffman — the 


TAMP  ICO    CANON  ON  AN  ENGINE.  285 

official  in  charge  of  that  part  of  the  line — and  I  left  our 
comfortable  private  car,  and  walked  the  length  of  the 
train  where  a  second  engine  had  been  added  for  the  twenty- 
eight  mile  tug.  As  we  were  to  pass  through  sundry 
tunnels,  and  as  I  wanted  to  see  the  working  of  an  engine, 
we  went  in  the  "cab,"  namely,  the  little  protected  part  where 
the  engine-driver — or  engineer,  as  he  is  always  called 
in  Mexico — works  his  innumerable  levers,  handles,  bolts, 
screws,  and  heaven  knows  what  besides.  It  was  a  stiff  climb 
up,  just  one  iron  bar  between  the  ground  and  the  floor  of  the 
engine  ;  but  who  minds  wide  steps  on  such  an  occasion  ? 

At  the  rear  of  the  train  was  our  private  car,  then  came 
first  and  third  class  coaches,  and  finally  a  couple  of  engines 
with  their  coal  trucks  ;  the  one  nearest  the  train  was  the 
bigger ;  ours,    which   did  all  the   steering,   the  smaller. 

Behind  the  body  of  our  engine  was  the  iron  and  glass 
that  we  all  know  so  well  by  sight.  The  engineer — a 
Canadian — sat  on  the  right  side  of  it,  perched  up  on  a 
high  seat.  He  could  see  straight  ahead  out  of  the  little 
window  before  him,  which  was  open,  and  the  two  side 
windows.  At  his  elbows,  in  front  of  him,  round  his  legs, 
and  between  them  too,  everywhere,  in  fact,  were  valves  and 
brakes   with    brass    knobs,    all    brightly  polished. 

On  the  other  side  of  the  cab  was  a  similar  bench, 
minus  all  these  implements  of  war,  and  on  that  I  seated 
myself,  my  feet  resting  against  the  front  window,  my  skirts 
carefully  gathered  up  on  to  my  lap,  to  prevent  their  being 
injured  by  the  furnace  fire.  My  official  friend  curled  him- 
self up  on  to  the  remaining  portion  of  the  seat  behind. 

In  the  middle  of  the  cab  there  was  just  room  for  the 
stoker ;  his  coal  truck  was  at  his  back,  his  furnace  fire 
before  him,  and  after  filling  his  large  shovel  full  of  coal  he 
swung  round,  opened  the  door  of  that  blazing  furnace — the 
heat  of  which  scorched  my  face  until  it  was  the  colour  of 
a   tomato — shovelled    it   in,  and  banged   the  massive  door 


286  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

to  again.  For  the  first  hour  he  put  on  fresh  coal  every 
thirty  or  forty  seconds,  in  fact,  as  often  as  he  could  con- 
veniently refill  his  shovel  and  open  the  furnace  door,  after 
that  he  only  did  so  every  one  or  two  minutes  !  Tremen- 
dous was  the  work  the  two  engines  had  to  do.  Now  and 
again  the  man  poked  our  fire  with  an  iron  rod  some  ten  feet 
long,  which  had  a  horse-shoe  at  the  end  to  act  as  a  sort  of 
rake.  Poking  the  fire  took  longer  than  merely  adding  coal, 
and  during  the  process  I  was  nearly  roasted. 

The  engine  bell  rang ;  our  locomotive  whistled  and 
snorted,  puffed  hard,  tugged  at  the  train,  made  literally 
deafening  noises,  and  ponderously  started  on  its  journey. 
The  route  at  that  point  was  along  a  grade  of  three  per 
cent,  nearly  all  the  way,  that  is  to  say  a  rise  of  about  i6o 
feet  in  every  mile  ! 

Two  things  amazed  me — the  awful  heat  in  which  those 
men  have  to  work,  especially  where  such  power  is  required, 
and  the  perfectly  deafening  noise  of  an  engine  puffing  and 
snorting  up  a  mountain  side.  It  was  almost  impossible  to 
hear  another  person  speak.  I  shrieked  questions  at  the 
official  behind  me  and  he  bellowed  back,  but  even  then 
it  was  well  nigh  impossible  to  hear.  I  have  always  had 
considerable  respect  for  men  working  an  engine,  knowing 
what  presence  of  mind  and  personal  courage  are  constantly 
required  in  their  calling,  but  after  spending  a  few  hours  in 
the  cab  of  an  engine,  I  began  to  feel  that  every  engine- 
driver  is  a  hero  !     Verily  an  uncrowned  hero. 

Our  speed  was  only  from  eight  to  ten  miles  an  hour,  but 
we  had  to  take  in  water  every  seven  miles,  so  steep  was 
the  ascent.  The  pace  when  descending  the  canon  is  about 
twenty  miles  an  hour,  and  one  shovel  of  coal  every  two 
or  three  miles — ^just  sufficient  to  keep  the  engine  warm — 
is  all  that  is  necessary.  Everything  then  depends  upon  the 
Westinghouse  air-brake,  one  of  the  greatest  and  safest  of 
modern  inventions  ;  everything  now  depended  on  steam  ! 


TAMP  ICO   CANON  ON  AN  ENGINE.  287 

It  was  certainly  a  wonderful  experience,  the  turns  in  the 
road  are  so  sharp  that  often  fifty  yards  ahead  is  all  that  one 
can  see,  and  sometimes  twenty  yards  is  the  limit,  flanked  by 
some  huge  rock.  Often  we  could  see  the  back  end  of  the 
train  turned  right  round  towards  the  engine,  we  were  in  fact 
running  parallel  to  each  other ! 

The  perspiration  simply  poured  from  the  poor  stoker,  as 
he  worked  to  keep  his  engine  fed  for  such  a  tug,  and  the 
heat  was  so  great  in  our  cab  that  I  felt  as  though  I  were 
being  boiled.  Cinders  and  sparks  flew  back  from  the  funnel 
through  my  window,  and  burnt  little  round  holes  all  over 
my  dress,  and  little  red  patches  on  my  hands  and  face !  All 
engines,  probably,  are  not  so  hot  as  this  was,  but  then  we 
were  ascending  one  of  the  record  canons  of  the  world,  and 
in  the  tropics  to  boot. 

Suddenly  I  got  an  awful  fright  ;  I  looked  across  to  the 
engineer's  seat,  and  lo  !   it  was  empty  ! 

This  made  me  quake,  and  I  yelled  into  the  ear  of  poor 
Mr.   Coffman  : 

"  Where  is  the  engine-driver  ?  " 

He  nodded  reassuringly,  at  the  same  time  replying  : 

"  He  has  orone  to  tig-hten  a  bolt." 

At  that  instant  the  Canadian  stepped  back  into  the  cab 
through  his  small  open  window,  hammer  in  hand,  and 
settled  himself  down  once  more  to  his  brakes  and  valves. 
To  me  it  had  been  a  terrible  moment,  for  I  had  not  seen 
the  man  go,  or  heard  him  move  in  that  tremendous  noisy 
vibration  and  snort  of  steam,  and  to  feel  that  the  engine 
might  walk  over  a  precipice  hundreds  of  feet  in  depth  at 
any  turn  in  the  road  seemed  horrible,  too  horrible  even  to 
contemplate. 

But  it  was  all  right  ;  a  little  later,  he  did  the  same  again, 
but  this  time  I  saw  him  adjust  his  handles  first,  before  he 
disappeared,  and  so  the  danger  did  not  seem  so  appalling. 

All     along     the     track     were    posts    marked    "  SLOW," 


288  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

"STOP,"  "WHISTLE,"  in  English,  yes,  actually  in 
English  !  It  is  quite  remarkable  to  find  that  practically  all 
the  train-people  in  Mexico  belong  to  English-speaking 
races.  For  instance,  the  Mexican  Central  Railway  runs 
over  some  two  thousand  miles  of  track,  and  every  engineer 
and  brakeman  on  the  trains  is  either  American  or  English. 
Even  the  car-porters  and  cooks  speak  English,  and  this 
remark  practically  applies  to  all  the  lines.  At  the  ticket 
offices,  anywhere,  in  the  stations,  and  on  the  trains,  Anglo- 
Saxon  is  the  language  of  travelling  Mexico. 

Formerly  the  greater  part  of  the  lines  and  rolling  stock 
was  English,  but  during  the  last  year  or  two  American 
goods  have  been  taking  their  place.     Why  ? 

"  Because  they  are  cheaper  and  better,"  is  the  reply. 

If  this  be  so,  surely  it  is  time  we  English  woke  up  and  re- 
gained the  trade  once  ours,  which  we  are  rapidly  losing. 

While  we  are  painting  our  engines  and  putting  grand 
golden  lines  on  them,  no  practical  use  whatever,  the 
American  is  expending  the  same  amount  of  money  in  adding 
to  the  comfort  of  his  railway  carriages,  and  therefore  the 
ease  of  the  public  ;  while  we  are  painting  the  words  "  Rail- 
way Company  "  upon  everything,  the  American  is  omitting 
even  the  R.C.,  and  thereby  saving  again. 

"Whv  is  American  enofineerino:  so  far  ahead  of 
English  ?  "   I  asked  a  well-known  engineer  in  the  States. 

"  Because  we  employ  machinery  to  make  machinery," 
was  the  reply.  "  Every  component  part  is  made  according 
to  a  pattern,  and  turned  out  in  hundreds." 

What  is  the  result  ?  American  engines,  bridges,  print- 
ing machines  and  automobiles,  made  at  half  the  price  of 
ours,  are  flooding  our  markets.  This  great  steel  trust 
is  going  to  close  many  of  our  doors,  and  we  intend  to 
allow  its  produce  to  land   upon  our  shores  free  ! 

Other  countries  are  growing  rich  by  means  of  protection, 
and  England  without   it  is  now  struggling   to  keep  her  head 


TAMP  ICO   CANON   ON  AN  ENGINE.  289 

above  water.  All  countries  should  be  free,  or  all  protected, 
otherwise  our  handicap  will  surely  prove  more  than  we  can 
stand. 

"  Why  is  America  so  rich  ?  "  I  asked  one  of  the  greatest 
statesmen  in  the  States. 

"  Because  of  the  duties  you  pay  us,  and  the  goods  we 
send  you  free  !  " 

And  he  knows. 

The  track  up  the  cafion  is  indeed  a  model  one.  It  is 
kept  so  splendidly,  the  edges  of  the  flints  on  which  the 
wooden  sleepers  lie  are  as  even  and  well  trimmed  as  the 
edges  of  a  drive  in  an  English  park.  The  ascent  is  so 
steep,  and  the  difficulties  so  ever-present,  what  with  rain, 
damp,  mist,  and,  at  certain  seasons  of  the  year,  floods,  that 
every  effort  has  to  be  made  to  keep  the  track  in  as  perfect 
condition  as  possible. 

We  went  through  several  tunnels,  and  when  we  saw  the 
black  hole  in  the  solid  rock  just  in  front  of  us,  we  shut  the 
front  window.  In  a  moment  all  was  darkness,  save  for  the 
fiery  sparks  and  cinders  which  fell  like  a  shower  from  the 
funnel.  The  heat  reminded  one  of  Dante's  description  of 
the  infernal  regions,  and  it  was  rendered  even  worse  by  the 
sulphurous  smoke  that  found  its  way  into  our  cab  from 
the  back,  which  was  all  open. 

We  gasped  for  breath,  and  dived  for  our  handkerchiefs, 
till,  feeling  more  like  ripe  tomatoes  than  ever,  we  sud- 
denly realised  that  we  were  out  of  the  tube  ;  the  white 
speck  of  light  had  become  a  real  opening,  and  we  could 
breathe  again.  We  looked  back  and  saw  volumes  of  smoke 
emerging  from  the  tunnel,  our  smoke  following  us,  drawn 
by  the  suction  of  the  train. 

It  was  a  lovely  ride,  and  a  most  unique  experience,  but  I 
dismounted  from  my  perch  at  Cardenas  looking  rather  like 
an  engine-driver  or  a  stoker  myself ! 


19 


290  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

At  the  moment  (1901)  there  seems  to  be  a  sudden  rush 
on  the  part  of  Mexican  raihvays  to  reach  the  Pacific  coast. 
The  International,  which  goes  as  far  as  Santiago,  where  I 
went  on  the  first  trial  trip,  hopes  to  reach  Mazatlan  on 
the  coast  next  year,  thus  joining  the  Mexican  Pacific  with 
the  States. 

The  Mexican  Central,  which  has  its  fine  port  at 
Tampico,  on  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  is  already  as  far 
across  as  Zapolan,  and  will  reach  the  Pacific  at  Manza- 
nillo  in  1902. 

The  Cuernavaca  and  Pacific,  now  as  far  south  as  the 
Balzas  river,  is  planning  to  reach  the  port  of  Acapulco. 

The  Mexican  Southern,  which  at  present  stops  at  Oaxaca, 
expects  to  be  at  Mitla  by  1902,  and  there  is  a  talk  of  con- 
necting it  later  with  the  Tehuantepec  line  on  the  Isthmus. 

The  Isthmus  route  from  Coatzacoalcos  to  Salina  Cruz 
is  completed. 

Thus,  in  a  few  months,  there  will  be  five  lines  touching 
ports  on  the  Pacific  coast,  such  is  the  enterprise  of  the 
railways,  helped  by  Government. 

Who  says  Mexico  has  not  a  great  future  .-^ 


The  writer  in  licr  divided  riding-skirl  tor  mounting  astride. 


Mounted  astride,  outside  tiie  Xociiicalco  ruins,  Soulhern  Mexico  (A/tee  man  in  wliile) 
To  J  ace  page  291.] 


>9i 


CHAPTER    XVIII. 

HOW  THE  GOVERNOR  OF  A  MEXICAN  STATE  ENTERTAINED  AN 

ENGLISHWOMAN. 

An  early  morning  train  was  to  convey  me  from  Mexico 
City  to  Cuernavaca,  such  a  lovely  journey,  by  El  Gran 
Pacifico  ! 

Armed  with  enormous  bouquets  of  violets,  gardenias, 
and  a  box  of  sweets — received  as  parting  gifts — and 
carrying  my  huge  sombrero,  I  entered  the  railway  carriage, 
after  saying  "  Good-bye  "  to  several  kind  friends.  My 
escort  happily  chanced  to  be  an  old  schoolfellow  of 
kindergarten  days  in  Harley  Street,  London,  who  had 
been  in  business  in  Mexico  for  some  years.  Adolfo 
Grimwood  knew  the  line  well,  and  could  point  out  all 
objects  of  interest,  which  were  not  few. 

While  we  were  enjoying  breakfast,  the  mist  rose  from 
the  valley,  and  the  train  ascended  about  two  thousand  feet 
to  an  elevation  of  ten  thousand  above  sea  level.  How 
grand  that  panorama  was  !  There  below — ^as  on  a  map — lay 
the  town  of  Mexico,  the  lakes  so  famous  in  history,  the  scat- 
tered villages,  the  deep  barrancas  and,  towering  above  the 
mountain  ranges,  those  two  glorious  snow-capped  volcanic 
peaks,  Popocatepetl  and  Ixtaccihuatl. 

It  is  a  splendid  journey,  each  view  more  beautiful  than 
the  last,  until — well,  the  first  impression  of  the  town  of 
Cuernavaca  would  have  been  rather  disappointing  had 
not  the  Governor  of  Morelos,  with  a  number  of  friends 
and  officials,  been  standing  on  the  platform  to  receive  us ! 

19* 


292  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

While  travelling  down  I  read  in  that  wonderful  little 
paper,  the  "  Mexican  Herald,"  this  announcement,  which  I 
soon  found,  judging  from  the  interest  they  appeared  to 
take  in  me,  everyone  in  the  train  had  read  also. 

ALONG    THE    GRAN    PACIFICO. 

ENGLISH  AUTHORESS  CONTINUES  HER  TRAVELS  OF  OBSERVATION. 
Mrs.  Alec  Tweedie,  the  charming  English  authoress,  will  leave  this  morning  for  a  trip 
to  Cuernavaca  and  other  points  along  the  line  of  the  Cuernavaca  and  Pacific,  and  perhaps 
the  caves  of  Cacahuamilpa.  President  Diaz  has  written  a  personal  letter  to  Governor 
Alarcon,  of  Morelos,  introducing  Mrs.  Tweedie.  The  Governor  will  meet  her  personally 
to-day,  and  a  concert  will  be  given  in  her  honour  this  evening  in  the  plaza  at  Cuernavaca. 
Mrs.  Alec  Tweedie  will  also  visit  the  hacienda  of  Governor  Alarcon,  and  also  the  Cortes 
and  Amors  hacienda.  After  her  return  to  this  City  she  will  visit  Puebla  and  other 
points  along  the  line  of  the  Mexican  Railway,  and  afterwards  Oaxaca  and  Mitla. 

Colonel  Alarcon  was  unfortunately  no  linguist ;  but  with 
my  limited  Spanish,  and  the  assistance  of  kind  people,  we 
became  great  friends  during  the  eight  days  he  so  courte- 
ously and  delightfully  pioneered  me  through  his  province. 
I  shall  therefore  describe  this  week  in  detail,  as  it  was 
a  typical  reception  by  a  Governor  of  a  State,  one  almost 
royal  in  its  magnificence. 

At  the  station,  with  ceremonious  courtesy,  he  offered 
me  his  arm.  Outside  a  beautiful  landau  was  waiting — 
closed  as  usual,  for  Mexicans  love  to  drive  shut  up,  in 
spite  of  the  glorious  weather.  Raising  his  hat,  he  closed 
the  door.  I  was  surprised  ;  but  next  moment  he  appeared 
at  the  other  door,  and  entering  the  landau  sat  down  beside 
me.  The  Mexicans  are  most  particular  about  placing 
honoured  guests  behind  the  coachman.  The  carriage  and 
horses  were  all  that  could  be  desired,  but — again  Mexican 
fashion  —  the  coachman  wore  no  livery,  except  a  big 
sombrero  !  It  is  only  right  that  a  straw  hat  should  be 
used  in  such  a  sunny  land,  and  the  Mexican  sombreros 
are  much  more  useful  than  the  sailor  hats  London  coach- 
men don  during  summer  weather.  The  Mexican  driver, 
especially  if  he  be  a  darkie,  often   uses  a  green-lined  white 


ENTERTAINMENT   OF  AN  ENGLISHWOMAN.  293 

umbrella,  for  he  is  afraid  of  the  sun  like  the  good  folk 
inside  the  carriage  he   is  driving. 

By-the-bye,  horses  in  Mexico  do  not  wear  hats ! 

As  we  drove  through  the  streets  both  policemen  and 
soldiers  saluted,  and  the  people  stood  back  and  bowed. 
The  Governor's  wife  was  unfortunately  absent,  being  ill  at 
their  hacienda  (country  house),  which  I  visited  later,  and 
the  Governor  had  therefore  engaged  rooms  for  me  in  the 
hotel,  thinking  I  should  be  more  comfortable  there  than 
in  his  residence  without  its  chatelaine.  Arrived  at  the 
hotel  he  again  offered  me  his  arm,  and  we  walked  across 
the  great  verandah,  where  people  were  sitting  at  little 
tables,  and  thence  solemnly  escorted  me  upstairs.  Waiters 
led  the  way,  and  unlocking  a  charming  room,  opening  off 
a  big  salon,  the  Governor  bid  me  welcome  as  his  guest, 
and  hoped   I   should  be  comfortable. 

A  splendid  luncheon  was  prepared,  to  which  I  was 
fetched  by  my  host — who,  be  it  known,  is  one  of  General  Diaz' 
greatest  and  most  esteemed  friends — we  passed  through  the 
patio,  full  of  flowers  and  plants,  and  when  we  reached  the 
dining-room,  he  requested  me  to  sit  at  the  head  of  the 
table,  he  himself  taking  a  seat  on  my  right.  Six  gentle- 
men were  of  the  party,  namely,  Seiior  Gobernador  Manuel 
Alarcon,  his  aides-de-camp — Captain  Juan  Enriquez,  Senors 
Ramon  Oliveros,  Ignacio  Sarmina — Mr.  William  Gaynor 
and   Mr.   Adolfo  Grimwood. 

Everything  was  perfect  at  that  luncheon,  where  I  en- 
joyed "  Aguacate "  for  the  first  time.  These  are  the 
butter  plants  of  Mexico,  which  in  appearance  are  like  a 
small  green  melon  ;  when  opened  they  are  seen  to  contain  a 
stone  resembling  a  large  chestnut.  Between  the  stone  and 
the  skin  is  a  delicious  soft  green  buttery  fruit,  which  the 
Mexicans  scrape  out  and  mix  with  their  soup.  We  were  a 
pleasant  little  party,  and  when  the  time  came  for  smoking, 
I  noticed  a  curious  cigar-cutter  that  Colonel  Alarcon  used. 


294  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

"I  am  very  proud  of  that,"  he  said,  "it  belonged  to 
our  great  patriotic  song  writer,  Guillermo  Prieto,  the  Poet 
Laureate  of  Mexico,  who  died  in  1897.  He  gave  it  to 
me  shortly  before  his  death  ;  at  least,  he  said  he  would 
give  it  me.  He  was  taken  ill,  however,  before  he  could 
do  so,  but  almost  on  his  death-bed,  almost  in  his  last 
hour  indeed,  he  remembered  the  promise,  and  told  his 
wife  to  send  me  that  cigar-cutter.  It  was  very  touching 
of  him,  and   I   prize  it  as  much  as  anything  I   possess !  " 

Prieto's  poems  were  full  of  brilliant  romance  and  wild 
imagination,  and  his  memory   is  adored. 

After  luncheon  the  Governor's  carriage  arrived,  and  we 
drove  out  to  see  the  town,  a  wonderfully  ancient  and  yet 
go-ahead  place,  with  its  fine  brick  factory — the  red  of  the 
bricks  reminded  me  of  our  pretty  English  homes — its 
brewery,  public  baths,  ice,  rice,  and  electric  light  factories, 
its  fine  cathedral,  and,  more  interesting  than  all — to  my 
mind — that  wonderful  old  garden  and  house  where  Maxi- 
milian lived.  It  was  January,  yet  the  magnolias  were  in 
full  flower  in  the  Jardin  de  la  Borda,  mangoes  in 
blossom,  roses  and  geraniums  in  full  flower,  semi-tropical 
fruits  hung  from  the  trees,  together  with  oranges  and 
bananas ;  everything  combined  to  make  those  fountains, 
steps,  and  water-ways  look  beautiful.  It  was  an  ideal 
garden,  a  garden  for  lovers  to  wander  through  at  will, 
and  whisper  those  sweet  nothings  which  turn  earth  to 
paradise  ;  the  spot  for  poet  or  painter  ;  a  place  to  sit  and 
reflect  how  beautiful  is  nature,  how  lovely  life,  to  realise 
into  what  a  world  of  joy  we  are  born.  It  is  places  like 
this  that  make  people  feel  better  men  and  women,  views 
like  this — across  valleys  and  over  mountain  peaks  with 
the  sunlight  glinting  through  the  trees — where  the  com- 
monplace dares  not  trample  unscrupulously  on  the  ideal, 
that   make   one  realise   the  blessedness  of  existence. 

In  that  garden  the    Emperor   Maximilian   and  poor  Car- 


ENTERTAINMENT   OF  AN  ENGLISHWOMAN.  295 

lotta  spent  much  of  their  time  ;  there  she  sat,  sketched 
or  read,  and  endeavoured  to  forget  the  peril  of  her  hus- 
band's position, 

Cuernavaca  stands  on  a  hill  with  deep  barrancas  or  chasms 
all  round  and  high  mountains  beyond,  and  the  healthiness 
of  the  town  and  its  beautiful  climate  do  much  to  make  it 
popular.  It  proved  more  picturesque  on  a  nearer  acquaint- 
ance than  it  had  appeared  from  the  train. 

That  night  a  military  band  played  beneath  my  window ! 

Next  morning  another  surprise  had  been  arranged. 
At  7-30  the  Governor  and  his  friends  arrived  to  take  me 
to  see  the  waterfall,  "  Cascada  de  San  Antonio,"  a  charm- 
ing drive  beyond  the  town.  We  were  all  talking  merrily 
when  suddenly  the  carriage  pulled  up  ;  to  my  amazement, 
under  a  triumphal  arch  ! 

"Welcome  to  San  Antonio"  was  written  above,  in  English  ; 
the  sides  and  top  were  beautifully  decorated  with  palms, 
bourganvillias,  large  trumpet  lilies,  arums,  and  begonias.  It 
really  was  a  lovely  bower,  for  it  was  composed  of  the  flowers 
we  only  see  in  hot-houses  and  guard  with  such  care,  in 
England,  but  which  grow  wild  in  those  parts.  The  arch 
looked  quite  fairy-like  in  its  floral  splendour,  owing  to  the 
artistic  manner  in  which  the  trestles  that  formed  its  frame- 
work were  interlaced. 

About  a  hundred  Indians  from  the  village  stood,  hat 
in  hand,  to  receive  us,  and  offerinQ-  me  his  arm,  Governor 
Alarcon  solemnly  walked  me  off,  followed  by  the  rest  of 
the  company.  It  made  me  feel  rather  ancient  to  be  thus 
ceremoniously  given  an  arm  at  every  turn  ;  but  it  is  of 
course  the  height  of  Mexican  politeness. 

After  going  a  short  distance  we  reached  a  set  of  stairs 
partly  cut  in  the  rock,  and  partly  secured  with  wood-work, 
on  what  had  formerly  been  a  most  dangerous  path.  This 
had  been  specially  prepared  in  my  honour,  and  was  in 
future  to  be  called  "Escaleras  Tweedie"  (Tweedie  staircase). 


296  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

We  went  down  to  the  beautiful  cascade  below,  passing 
under  smaller  arches  raised  by  the  Indians,  with  wreaths 
and  festoons  of  flowers,  and  actually  found  seats  had  been 
erected  from  which  to  enjoy  a  view  of  the  Falls!  It 
was  all  very  pretty,  and  to  me  particularly  touching  ;  in  the 
first  place  it  showed  the  Governor's  desire  to  please  President 
Diaz,  who  had  written  both  to  him  and  the  Secretary  of  State 
personal  letters  on  my  behalf,  and  secondly  it  showed  the 
love  of  the  villagers  for  their  Governor,  as  they  had  done 
much  more  than  he  had  suooestecl.  He  had  ordered  the 
stair-way  to  be  cut,  but  the  floral  arches  were  their  own 
idea. 

When  we  returned  from  this  lovely  spot,  where  wild 
maidenhair  fern  and  arum  lilies  w^ere  growing  by  the  side  of 
the  waterfall,  we  drove  through  the  village  of  San  Antonio, 
and  five  times  were  the  carriages  stopped,  while  the  Indians 
presented  me  with  pieces  of  their  pottery,  as  "a  remem- 
brance of  your  visit,  Senora."  That  pottery  is  made  of  rich 
red-brown  clay — the  same  as  is  used  at  the  brick  factory — 
and  a  sort  of  mosaic  work  is  traced  upon  it,  with  small 
triangles  and  diamonds  of  white  china  ;  the  eagle  of  Mexico 
is  naturally  the  chief  decoration,  surrounded  by  borders 
of  geometrical  pattern.  The  result  is  charming,  and  I 
eventually  had  to  get  a  wooden  case,  and  have  it  properly 
packed  in  order  to  convey  my  offerings  from  the  Indians  in 
Morelos  back  to  England.  The  people  were  so  clean  and 
picturesque,  and  so  delightfully  respectful  in  their  manners  to 
their  Governor,  it  seemed  impossible  to  believe  that  twenty 
years  ago  rebellion  was  rife,  and  no  one's  life  safe. 

Old  women  came  out  and  offered  roses,  and  at  one  place 
a  man  brought  the  most  magnificent  bouquet  of  white  mag- 
nolias I  had  ever  seen.  Twenty  or  thirty  of  these  glorious 
blooms  were  tied  together,  the  scent  from  which  in  the 
carriage  was  almost  overpowering. 

At  the  village  pf  San  Antonio  is  a  curiously-carved   pre- 


ENTERTAINMENT   OF  AN  ENGLISHWOMAN.    297 

historic  rock,  and  on  a  hill  close  at  hand  a  lizard  nine  feet 
long  is  sculptured  upon  a  large  boulder.  Further,  again,  is 
the  famous  stone  eagle — the  bird's  wings  outspread  measure 
about  three  feet.  Such  strange  bits  of  carving  may  be 
seen  anywhere  and  everywhere  in  Mexico. 

It  was  a  day  of  surprises.  At  Cuernavaca  is  the  famous 
palace  of  Hernando  Cortes.  It  was  built  about  the  year 
1525,  in  grand  solid  old  Spanish  style  with  arches  and  deep 
verandahs,  but  this  is  no  guide-book,  it  is  only  a  description 
of  Mexico  as  I  saw  it,  and  further  information  of  a  guide- 
book nature  must  therefore  be  sought  elsewhere.* 

The  Aztec  monarch,  Montezuma,  was  furnished  with  re- 
inforcements from  Cuernavaca.  Then  came  Cortes,  and 
the  subsequent  Conquest  of  Mexico.  Now  the  ecclesiastical- 
looking  old  building  is  the  Municipal  Palace. 

A  grand  luncheon  had  been  arranged  for  the  occasion  of 
my  visit.  What  could  be  more  interesting  than  a  banquet 
within  those  historical  walls  which  had  witnessed  so  many 
bloody  deeds,  for  men  were  slain  and  steel  had  often  clashed 
at  Cuernavaca  !  but  amid  the  sunshine  and  the  flowers,  with 
a  gay  company  assembled  around,  these  walls  spoke  only 
of  happiness  and  joy.  The  palace  has  been  fitted  to  suit 
modern  requirements,  and  the  rooms  are  now  used  for 
meetings  and  assemblies  of  all  kinds. 

When  we  arrived  a  guard  of  soldiers  was  keeping  the 
door,  and  a  military  band  stationed  in  the  square  below. 

The  Governor  of  the  State  had  asked  about  twenty  people 
to  luncheon  which  we  enjoyed  on  a  verandah  commanding  a 
most  glorious  view  !  The  guests  included  Seiior  Eugenio  y 
Cafias,  the  Treasurer  of  the  State  ;  Luis  Flores,  the  Secre- 
tary of  State,  Ignacio  Robles  y  Sosa  (manager  of  the  Cortes 
hacienda  which  we  visited  in  great  ceremony  the  following 
day),  Ignacio  Sarmina,  Adolfo   Grimwood   (my  old  school- 

*  Campbell's  excellent  guide,  or  Janviers'  more  historical  one,  give  all  details  needed 
by  the  tourist. 


298 


MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 


fellow),  William  Gayiior,  Harry  Hampson,  of  the  Cuernavaca 
Railway,  Ramon  de  Oliveros,  and  their  women  folk. 

Below  is  the  card  of  invitation  to  the  banquet. 


^&-^  PvIENU  ^-^ 


de  la  co:iiida  ofrecida  en  el  corredor  del  Palacio 
de  Heriian  Cortes  a.  la 

Sra,  Jllec  Dweedie, 

por  el 

SENOR  CORONEL  MANUEL  ALARCON. 


Jeeez 


Chablis. 


APERITIVOS. 


I      Ostiones  al  natural. 


1 


Cos  D'estournel. 


BORGONA. 


Tortila  con  cblcharos. 
Huachinango  d  la  princesa. 

Pavo  trufado. 
Ensalada  de  langosta. 
Ponche  d.  la  romana. 

Pastel  de  polio. 
Eoast  beef. 
Espdrragos. 
Queso  camembert. 


Champagne,     pasteles,  dulces,  jaletinas,  feutas. 
TE.        CAFE.        COGNAG.        LICORES. 


Gucri]QvacQ,  Uncro  20   dc  1901. 


[Translation.— Menu.  A  luncheon  offered  in 
the  hall  of  the  Palace  of  Hern;in  Cortes  to  Mrs. 
A.  T.,  by  Governor  Colonel  Manuel  Alarcon.] 


ENTERTAINMENT   OF  AN  ENGLISHWOMAN  299 

A  dozen  or  more  performers,  all  with  mandolines  or 
guitars,  played  delightful  Mexican  music  during  dinner,  and 
afterwards  we  all  felt  gay  and  festive  enough  to  dance,  and 
the  danza,  typical  of  the  country,  is  really  charming. 

But  to  return  to  our  luncheon. 

Every  guest  was  given  a  bouquet  of  flowers  to  wear,  with 
a  pin  attached  for  the  gentlemen,  and  a  safety-pin  for  the 
ladies.  My  bunch  was  chiefly  composed  of  orange  blossom, 
over  which  we  had  many  jokes.  The  Governor  of  the  State, 
on  learning  I  was  a  widow,  thought  it  would  be  amusing  to 
be  what  he  called  "a  good  prophet,"  or,  as  I  said,  "a  bad 
one,"  and  had  specially  ordered  my  bunch  to  be  composed 
of  orange  blossom  ! 

It  is  funny  in  Mexico  to  see  how  both  men  and  women 
produce  a  pin  and  fasten  their  table-napkins  high  up  under 
their  chins  !  The  banquets  are  tremendously  long  ;  I 
actually  once  sat  down  at  one  o'clock  and  rose  at  4-30  ; 
at  least  twenty-five  dishes  passed  in  succession !  Ices  are 
invariably  served  in  the  middle  of  the  repast  ;  after  the 
fruit  course — always  delicious  tropical  fruit — the  crumbs  are 
removed,  and  the  puddings  and  preserves  begin.  Another 
Mexican  custom  is  for  everyone  to  drink  a  liqueur  of  brandy 
in  the  drawing-room  before  dinner  ;  it  is  handed  round  just 
before  the  meal.  People  swallow  it  raw,  and  quaff  off  iced 
water ! 

At  the  Governor's  luncheon  we  had  red,  green  and  white 
jellies  cleverly  arranged  to  represent  the  Mexican  flag  !  Rib- 
bons of  the  national  colours  were  cunningly  entwined  among 
the  flowers. 

Colonel  Alarcon  made  me  a  delightful  little  speech,  and 
Spanish  Mexicans  certainly  know  how  to  pay  a  compliment 
prettily  —  saying  that  whatever  he  had  arranged  to  do 
at  the  request  of  his  esteemed  friend  and  master.  Presi- 
dent Diaz,  he  now  did  with  a  thousand  times  more  pleasure 
because   he  knew  me  personally  !     Adolfo  Grim  wood  replied 


300  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

charmingly  on  my  behalf,  for  my  poor  Spanish  could  only 
say  "  Very,  very  many  thanks." 

The  wines  were  numerous  ;  in  Mexico  people  drink  a 
good  deal  at  table,  in  which  they  differ  materially  from  the 
folk  of  the  United  States  ;  the  men  but  not  the  Mexican 
ladies  smoke  during  dessert.  At  the  very  end  of  dinner, 
practically  after  everything  has  been  cleared  away,  cham- 
pagne is  handed  round,  and  the  healths  which  have  been 
drunk  all  through  the  meal  are  continued  with  renewed  gusto. 
"  Salud  "  is  murmured  on  every  side.  The  gentlemen  then 
offer  their  arms  to  the  ladies  and  escort  them  to  the  drawing- 
room,  standing  back  on  one  side  to  finish  their  cigars  or 
cio^arettes. 

Of  course  there  is  "  the  sofa  of  honour  " — most  countries 
seem  to  have  that  terrible  seat  of  torture,  with  chairs 
ranging  down  from  it  on  both  sides — and  there  it  was  my 
fate  to  sit.  Every  stranger  who  entered  was  introduced  by 
his  full  name  and  title ;  he  bowed  and  I  bowed,  then 
we  shook  hands,  for  in  Mexico  the  men  do  not  kiss  a 
woman's  hand  ;  that  is  a  pretty  custom  they  ignore.  Every- 
one shakes  hands  on  every  possible  occasion  ;  in  fact  a 
clerk  leaving  an  office  will  bow  to  his  superior,  and  while 
asking  permission  to  go  to  his  dinner,  shake  hands  with 
his  "  boss," 

Mexicans  are  most  hospitable  and  kindly,  provided  one 
has  good  introductions,  but  without  them  no  stranger  is  ever 
invited  to  enter  their  doors.  They  were  more  than  good 
to  me. 

The  greatest  excitement  of  my  stay  in  Cuernavaca  was 
arranged  for  that  Sunday  evening.  The  Governor  had 
organised  an  official  concert  in  the  theatre.  He  came  to 
fetch  me  at  9  o'clock,  and  when  we  drove  up  to  the  "  Teatro 
Porfirio  Diaz,"  a  crowd  was  waiting  to  receive  us. 

Appended  is  the  invitation,  beautifully  printed  on  a  coloured 
card,  on  the  reverse  side  of  which  was  the  programme : — 


ENTERTAINMENT   OF  AN  ENGLISHWOMAN.    301 


302  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

The  entire  place  was  decorated,  inside  and  out.  Festoons 
of  moss  and  flowers  ;  yards  and  yards,  and  hundreds  of  yards 
of  the  lovely  grey  moss  that  grows  in  those  tropical  regions 
hung  from  box  to  box.  Between  each  were  bouquets  of 
flowers,  even  the  fronts  of  the  boxes  which  rise  in  tiers  were 
festooned.  It  was  a  large  hall,  as  the  theatres  in  Mexico 
usually  are,  and  that  night  looked  a  bower  of  beauty. 

On  the  stage  about  thirty  young  ladies,  dressed  in 
many  shades  of  colour,  were  seated  with  their  mando- 
lines and  guitars ;  below  was  the  ordinary  orchestra.  The 
house  was  full  ;  the  stalls  were  crowded  ;  there  were  two 
rows  of  boxes,  filled  with  smiling  humanity — we  occupied  a 
box  in  the  centre,  and  above,  the  galleries  were  packed  with 
enthusiastic  Indians.  It  really  was  a  delightful  experience, 
or  would  have  been,  if  quite  so  many  opera-glasses  had  not 
been  turned  our  way  ! 

There  were  many  pretty  costumes  at  the  concert.  Some 
of  the  men  actually  wore  evening  dress,  but  all  the  ladies  had 
donned  high  light  silks.  Low  dresses,  except  for  balls,  are 
unknown  outside  the  City  of  Mexico.  But  one  and  all  of 
these  fair  dames  had  a  flower  tucked  somewhere  in  their 
hair,  either  behind  the  ear,  or  more  usually  on  one  side 
towards  the  front,  where  it  nestled  amono-  raven  tresses. 
Mantillas  were  not  to  be  seen,  and  the  high  comb  was 
missing.  It  was  a  smart  audience,  despite  high  dresses  and 
frock-coats,  and  certainly  enthusiastic,  not  only  over  the 
music,  but  on  the  entrance  of  Colonel  Alarcon. 

The  next  day's  experiences  were  different,  yet  equally 
interesting.  A  dozen  of  us  rode  to  the  hacienda  where 
Cortes  made  sugar  nearly  four  hundred  years  ago,  and 
where,  at  the  time  of  my  visit,  it  was  made  in  the  self-same 
way  ! 

The  Governor  in  his  charro  suit  was  mounted  on  a  white 
horse  with  a  marvellous  saddle  and  bridle.  I  had  the 
pleasure  of  riding  that  same  horse  a  little  later.     The  charro 


ENTERTAINMENT   OF  AN  ENGLISHWOMAN.    303 

is  the  typical  Mexican  riding-dress.  It  is  often  made  of 
light  brown  leather — kid  or  lamb  skin — on  which  are 
beautiful  devices  in  silver,  or  white  stitching.  The  coat  is 
short,  almost  a  bolero,  and  the  trousers  so  tight  that  one 
wonders  how  the  wearer  ever  gets  into  them.  The  legs, 
gorgeously  decorated  at  the  side,  are  often  ornamented 
with  dozens  of  silver  buttons,  especially  the  riding-dress  of 
rich  rancheros  or  haciendados.  The  charro  is  as  heavily 
adorned  as  the  saddle,  and  the  value  of  the  two  together 
sometimes  reaches  as  much  as  a  couple  of  hundred  pounds 
sterling. 

We  had  seven  Rurales,  as  a  body-guard. 

It  was  a  strange  cavalcade  ;  all  were  men,  with  the  ex- 
ception of  myself,  and  as  I  rode  astride,  I  might  perhaps 
have  passed  for  a  little  bit  of  a  man  too !  The  other  ladies 
drove  ;  we  were  thirty-six  by  the  time  all  had  arrived  for 
dinner.  The  sun  was  hot,  but  no  ladies  wore  hats  ;  they 
either  drove  in  a  closed  carriage  or  used  a  parasol. 

The  ride  was  most  interesting,  passing  as  it  did  the  little 
house  to  which  Maximilian  often  rode  from  Cuernavaca  for 
an  afternoon's  rest,  but  the  Cortes  hacienda  itself  was  the 
chief  charm.  It  stood  as  it  had  done  in  the  days  of  the 
great  conqueror  himself,  when  he  lived  there  with  a  fair 
lady  whom — history  records — he  ultimately  murdered. 

As  we  entered  the  great  archway,  and  the  horses'  hoofs 
rattled  over  the  stones,  we  seemed  carried  back  to  the  old 
feudal  days  of  portcullis  and  knights  in  armour,  outside  the 
castle  keep. 

It  is  the  dearest  old  place  ;  so  strong  and  massive,  so 
imposing  in  its  solid  strength.  Just  inside  an  archway  is  a 
sort  of  office.  It  has  neither  windows  nor  doors ;  but 
behind  a  big  table  and  desk  a  clerk  keeps  accounts  of  all 
cart-loads  as  they  pass  before  him  to  the  factory.  A  fine 
carved  staircase  leads  to  the  dwelling-rooms  above,  and 
looking    on    to    this     stairway    from    an    inner    room    is    a 


304  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT, 

window.  It  has  no  glass,  not  even  cow-horn,  but  the 
wooden  posts  are  carved.  Above  is  the  signature  of 
Cortes  : 

"  Jesus.  Maria.  Josti  Hernando  CorttfsJ' 

as  he  himself  inscribed  it  there  so  long  ago ! 

The  buildings  run  all  round  four  sides  of  an  enormous 
courtyard.  On  the  left  is  the  house,  with  its  large,  airy 
chambers,  quaint  kitchens  with  their  vaulted  roofs  and  red- 
brick floors — the  sort  of  kitchen  where  charcoal  is  burnt 
in  large  stone  stoves,  such  as  are  to  be  seen  in  Morocco. 
In  the  rooms  are  some  of  Cortes'  massive  wooden  chests, 
one  of  which  is  big  enough  to  have  comfortably  held  the 
lady  of  whom  we  read  in  the  "  Mistletoe  Bough."  Below 
the  apartments  are  great  dark  cellars,  which  form  a  sort  of 
\  cloister,  where  the  sugar  is  extracted  from  the  molasses. 

Sugar-cane  grows  for  miles  around  the  hacienda  ;  it  is  cut, 
carted  to  the  factory,  and  passed  through  machinery  to 
extract  the  juice,  whence  it  emerges  a  green,  slimy  sub- 
stance. Cooked  to  evaporate  the  water  and  clear  the 
residue,  it  goes  through  many  processes  of  boiling  and 
skimming,  and  is  subsequently  poured  into  thousands  of 
brown  earthenware  jars,  such  as  may  be  seen  in  the  picture. 
These  are  the  same  jars  as  were  used  by  Cortes,  and  the 
shape  of  the  top  one  is  the  origin  of  the  sugar  loaf,  or  loaf 
sugar.  The  clear  sugar  remains  in  the  top  pot.  These 
earthenware  jars  are  going  out  of  vogue.  Modern  machinery 
is  coming  into  use  all  through  Mexico,  and  at  most  of  the 
haciendas  the  old  system  is  being  abandoned,  while  the  jars 
are  broken  into  bits  and  utilised  for  making  garden  walls  or 
road-ways ! 

The  molasses  extracted  forms  a  thick  brown  syrup,  which 
is  rather  acid  ;  it  falls  through  into  the  jar  below,  and  is 
ultimately  made  into  a  strong  alcoholic  cordial  called 
aguardiente    (burning    water),   90   per   cent,   being    alcohol, 


■«'5D 


5    'J  r^ 


CJ.S 


bJOd 


O 


ENTERTAINMENT   OF  AN  ENGLISHWOMAN    305 

which  when  reduced  and  mixed  with  brown  sugar  makes 
rum.  The  crystals  remain  in  the  jars  and  come  out  as 
81  per  cent,  of  sugar. 

The  two  other  sides  of  this  great  courtyard  are  utilised 
for  factory  work,  and  the  fourth  consists  of  stables  for 
horses,  mules  and  donkeys.  The  funniest  old  man,  a 
regular  Mexican  Abraham — and  after  all,  why  not,  if,  as 
some  suppose,  the  garden  of  Eden  was  in  Southern 
Mexico  ? — was  mending  harness ;  near  at  hand  was  a 
huge  box-like  sedan-chair,  or  rather  Indian  palanquin,  in 
which  ladies  were  carried  to  Cuernavaca,  or  even  to  Mexico 
City,  until  quite  recently,  swung  between  two  mules. 
Imagine,  over  those  mountain  passes— for  the  road,  like 
the  railway,  reaches  an  elevation  of  ten  thousand  feet — 
imagine  traversing  that  track,  swung  between  two  mules ! 

I   prefer  to  ride  astride,  thank  you  ;    the   only  reasonable 

way  for  a  woman  to  mount,  if  she  wishes  to  accomplish  lono- 
1    •  •       •  i  & 

and  tirmg  journeys  on  horseback. 

We  had  a  wonderful  luncheon  at  the  Cortes  hacienda. 
Our  party  of  thirty-six  arrived  in  due  time,  and,  according 
to  an  old  custom  still  in  vogue,  the  host  (Senor  Robles) 
sat  at  the  head  of  the  table,  then  came  all  his  guests,  and 
at  the  bottom — "below  the  salt,"  as  in  days  of  yore — the 
book-keepers  and  heads  of  departments.  It  was  a  delightful 
experience ;  everyone  was  so  kind.  Nearly  all  talked 
French,  English  or  German,  and  those  who  could  not  do 
so  spoke  Spanish  slowly  and  distinctly,  and  did  their  best 
to  understand  my  attempts  in  the  latter  language,  which 
anyway  amused  them  ! 

That  Cortes  hacienda  was  the  strangest,  funniest  old 
building,  more  like  a  monastery  than  anything  else  ;  and 
everything  connected  with  it,  even  the  meal  itself,  was 
an  episode  in  one's  life  to  be  treasured  in  remembrance 
until  death.  The  whole  place  was  teeming  with  poetry 
and  romance ;    every   corner    was    a    picture,    every    room 

20 


3o6  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

contained  enough  subject  matter  to  fill  a  volume.  In- 
trigue, conspiracy,  murder,  all,  all  lay  hidden  in  the  silent 
stones  of  those  great  walls  and  arched  domes. 

That  night,  on  our  return  to  Cuernavaca,  I  had  a  real 
Mexican  dinner  at  Sefior  Ramon  Olivero's,  who,  like  so 
many  Mexicans,  had  been  educated  at  Stonyhurst  College. 
The  Mexican  menu,  kindly  composed  by  his  wife,  was 
representative  of  the  every-day  fare  of  the  country. 

"  Sopa  de  Tortilla"  (soup,  made  with  the  Indian  corn 
tortilla,  and  flavoured). 

"  Fiambre"  (pigs'  feet,  served  cold,  and  delicious,  especially 
the  salad,  made  from  the  green  melon  fruit). 

"  Carnero  "  (mutton  salted  and  baked,  with  vegetables). 

"  Calabazitas  con  quese  "  (pumpkins  and  cheese  cooked 
together,  most  palatable). 

"Enchiladas"  (tortillas  rolled  up  with  red  chilli  and 
cooked  in  milk). 

"  Frijoles"  (beans,  the  national  dish  of  the  country). 

"  Merengue  "  (eggs  and  milk,  a  sort  of  meringue  which 
the  Mexicans  love). 

Then  we  had  a  delightful  sweet,  a  pumpkin  boiled  in  a 
sugar  vat.  Mexicans  take  half-a-dozen  pumpkins,  prick 
holes  at  either  end,  put  them  into  a  net,  attached  by  a 
string,  so  as  not  to  lose  them  in  the  great  cauldron,  and 
let  them  boil  for  a  day.  The  pumpkin  becomes  brown  all 
over,  and  almost  resembles  a  plum-pudding  ;  it  tastes  some- 
thing like  a  candied  melon,  is  called  "  Calabaza  en  tacha," 
and, -strangely  enough,  if  a  girl  jilts  a  man,  the  Mexicans  use 
the  expression  "  Dar  Calabazas,"  meaning  that  she  gave 
him  "sweet  pumpkin,"  i.e.,  his  conge. 

Orange  tea — "  Hojas  de  naranjo" — was  served  instead 
of  coffee,  and  we  found  it  very  refreshing.  It  is  made 
from  the  fresh  young  leaves  of  the  orange-tree,  which  are 
treated  like  tea,  and  have  boiling  water  poured  over 
them.      This  is  often  served  instead  of  black  coffee. 


ENTERTAINMENT   OF  AN  ENGL/SHWOJ/AN    307 

Among  the  guests  was  Licenciado  Cecilio  Robelo,  a  most 
interestino-  man,  who  has  written  several  works  on  the 
languages  of  the  Indians.  He  remarked  how  strange  it 
is  that  althouQfh  the  Aztecs  drove  out  the  more  ancient 
Toltec  people,  yet  they  retained  the  Toltec  names,  which 
survive  to-day.  There  are  a  number  of  native  writers  of 
this  kind,  men  who  have  devoted  themselves  to  unearthino- 
different  tribes  and  languages,  to  tracing  the  similarity  of 
peoples  or  contrasting  the  workmanship  of  the  ancient  races 
which  are  to  be  found  all  over  the  country. 

The  Governor,  who  was  also  present,  had  ordered  a  band 
to  play  outside  during  dinner,  and  when  he  gave  me  his 
arm  to  walk  home,  we  found  the  entire  street  crowded  with 
the  inhabitants,  who  had  come  to  hear  the  strains,  which 
said  music,  following  us,  made  harmony  beneath  my  window 
long  after  I  was  in  bed.  Soft  tones  of  melody,  and  the 
low  notes  of  the  guitar,  lulled  me  to  sleep. 

The  next  morning  I  had  to  be  up  at  5.30  to  live 
through  one  of  the  longest  and  yet  most  interesting  days 
of  my  life,  owing  to  its  strange  variety.  First  a  party  of 
us — ten  in  number — had  a  special  train  for  an  hour  along 
the  line  to  the  south,  where  we  bid  good-bye  to  such 
modern  luxuries,  and  travelled  over  the  mountains  on 
horse-back  for  a  week.     Could  anything  be  more  delightful  ? 

Our  first  visit  was  to  the  hacienda  of  San  Vicente, 
belonging  to  the  daughter  of  the  famous  Juarez,  who  did 
so  much  for  Mexico.  In  this  ancient  buildinof  suo-ar  was 
made  on  all  the  newest  principles,  and  with  the  latest 
machinery,  a  strong  contrast  to  the  picturesque  old  system 
of  Cortes'  day,  but  more  than  twice  as  profitable.  The 
brown  pots  had  given  place  to  modern  moulds,  and 
everything  was  thoroughly  up  to  date. 

The  ride  from  thence  was  most  interesting  ;  we  passed 
through  hundreds  of  acres  of  sugar-cane,  weeded  and 
watered  just  like  flowers  in  an  English  garden.      As  a  rule  it 

20* 


3o8  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

bears  once  in  eighteen  months,  but  according  to  the  district 
it  sometimes  yields  twice  in  even  six  months.  The  sugars 
stood  as  high  as  twenty  feet,  and  the  ground  was  all  irrigated, 
little  troughs  of  water  running  through  between  the  cane. 
Hundreds  of  people  were  cutting  it — such  picturesque- 
looking  folk  !  The  cutting  was  done  by  means  of  a  sickle, 
with  which  the  branches — if  one  may  so  designate  the  leaf- 
like shoots — were  clipped  off.  Mules  fetched  the  cane, 
stacked  in  bundles,  to  the  tram-line,  where  it  was  quickly 
run  along  to  the  factory,  and  subsequently  worked  into  the 
purest  of  pure  sugar.  When  it  is  ripe,  all  the  lower  part  of 
the  sugar-cane  is  brown  and  withered,  but  the  top  remains 
the  brightest  hue  of  green,  something  like  an  apple-leaf  in 
spring.  The  contrast  between  those  strong  black-green 
organ  cactus  and  the  soft  green  tendrils  of  the  cane  is  very 
beautiful,  the  effect  being  heightened  by  the  white  shirts  and 
red  blankets  of  the  peons.  Mules  and  carts  scattered  here 
and  there  added  life  and  picturesqueness  to  the  scene.  A 
sugar-field  is  an  impressive  sight.  Hop-picking  forms  a 
pretty  and  fascinating  picture,  but  add  to  that  tropical  ver- 
dure, deep-blue  skies,  dark-skinned  Indians,  and  the  scene 
becomes  absolutely  entrancing. 

At  a  still  more  wonderful  old  hacienda,  called  Chiconcuac 
— for  we  were  now  in  the  South,  which  is  particularly  rich 
in  these  splendid  old  properties — we  halted  to  drink  milk 
and  admire  some  magnificent  arches  and  pillars,  raised  by 
the  monks  of  yore,  and  then  again  mounted  our  steeds  in 
order  to  ride  to  some  of  the  most  famous  ruins  in  the 
world. 

What  a  cavalcade  we  were  !  Our  original  party  consisted 
of  ten  gentlemen,  the  daughter  of  the  Secretary  of  State, 
Sefiorita  Flores,  and  myself,  but  later  we  were  met  by  our 
official  escort,  which  had  left  Cuernavaca  at  one  a.m.  with 
extra  riding  horses.  We  had  also  a  guard  of  Rurales,  so 
that    we    eventually    counted  fifty-three     mounted   persons. 


Colonel  Alarcon,  Governor  of  the  Slate  of  Morelos,  with  two  of  his  guard. 


Reception  at  Alpuyeca,  State  of  Morelos. 


To  J  ace  page  309.  ] 


ENTERTAINMENT   OF  AN  ENGLISHWOMAN.    309 

Besides  these,  many  of  the  most  Important  men  from  the 
neighbouring  villages  had  come  to  pay  their  respects  to 
the  Governor,  and  the  numbers  of  such  visitors  were  for 
days  continually  swelling.  When  we  reached  the  mountains 
and  were  oblio^ed  to  ride  in  slnoje  file,  we  looked  Indeed 
a  formidable  army. 

The  first  excitement  was  at  the  village  of  Alpuyeca, 
where  a  triumphal  arch  had  been  erected,  and  the  word 
"  Wellcome"  (with  two  "  I's ")  was  hanging  above  the 
flowers.  What  a  strange  sight  it  seemed  !  Two  or  three 
hundred  Indians,  smart  and  clean-looking  In  their  white 
shirts  and  trousers,  standing — hat  in  hand — to  do  honour  to 
the  Governor  of  their  State  !  The  Mayor  and  chief  men  all 
came  forward  In  turn,  and  after  shaking^  hands  with  Colonel 
Alarcon,  shook  hands  with  me  also. 

The  chief  street  was  gaily  decorated  with  flags,  floral 
banners,  hanging  festoons,  and  the  municipal  buildings  bore 
the  kindly  inscription  "  Wellcome  to  our  English  Visitor." 
A  platform  had  been  put  up  adorned  with  pink  calico  and 
a  muslin  curtain,  on  which  stood  three  children,  forming  an 
allegorical  groiip.  The  tableau  represented  the  Independ- 
ence of  Mexico,  and  the  centre  child,  wearing  a  red  cap, 
stood  for  Liberty.  The  school-children  marched  before  us 
carrying  flags,  and  the  band  played,  yes,  a  brass  band  of 
seventeen  performers,  with  trumpets,  flutes  and  drums. 

Every  village  in  Mexico  has  its  band,  for  the  people 
dearly  love  music — not  always  particularly  tuneful,  some- 
times, indeed,  harmony  In  uproar — but  whatever  It  may 
be,  it  delights  their  hearts.  Colonel  Alarcon  had  invited 
his  friend  Salvador  Gutierrez  to  join  our  mountain  expedi- 
tion, and,  being  an  expert  photographer  as  well  as  an  able 
soldier,  he  took  pictures  of  the  same. 

We  passed  through  at  least  a  dozen  villages  altogether 
during  our  trip  through  the  mountains,  and  in  each  village 
the   band   played,   arches    were  erected,   and  every  sign   of 


3IO  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

love  and  respect  was  paid  to  the  Governor  of  the  State. 
It  was  wonderfully  interesting,  this  peep  into  other  days, 
as  it  were,  the  days  of  chivalry  and  romance.  The  Jefe 
Politico  (head  political  officer  or  sheriff  of  the  district), 
under  whom  serves  the  Alcalde  (Mayor),  was  always  ready 
to  receive  us,  hat  in  hand,  a  smile  on  his  face,  and  holding 
bouquets  of  tropical  flora.  These  Jefe  Politicos  were  in- 
variably gentlemen  ;  sometimes  they  spoke  French,  and 
their  unfailing  courtesy  and  powers  of  entertaining  were 
amazing. 

The  village  mayors  were  Indians  whose  fathers,  and  often 
they  themselves,  had  been  bandits  and  robbers,  for  only  a 
quarter  of  a  century  ago  it  was  impossible  to  travel  safely 
anywhere  in  Mexico.  For  instance,  the  State  of  Guerrero, 
through  which  we  passed,  has  only  been  quieted  within  the 
last  few  years.  The  strongest  measures  have  been  adopted 
in  order  to  stamp  out  lawlessness,  and  even  to-day,  if  a  man 
be  known  to  have  committed  robbery  or  murder,  he  is  caught, 
informed  of  the  charge  against  him,  and  considered  guilty 
unless  he  can  prove  his  innocence.  If  he  cannot  do  this, 
he  is  taken  out  of  the  village  by  soldiers,  and  forthwith 
shot.  This  treatment  is  severe,  but  it  has  produced  the 
most  wonderful  results.  As  late  as  ten  years  ago  the  tracts 
of  country  we  passed  through  were  unsafe,  and  even  in  the 
beginning  of  the  twentieth  century  every  member  of  our 
party,  with  the  exception  of  my  lady  companion  and  myself, 
was  armed  with  pistols,  while  all  the  officials  carried  a  sword 
and  gun  in  his  elaborately  embroidered  leather  and  silver- 
mounted  saddle. 

As  we  neared  the  famous  Aztec  ruins  of  Xochicalco, 
pronounced  So-chi-cal-co,  which  are  said  to  be  at  least 
three  thousand  years  old,  we  began  a  steep  ascent,  so 
steep,  indeed,  that  it  was  almost  like  walking  upstairs, 
only  the  poor  horses  had  a  very  uneven  stairway  to 
mount,  as  they  stepped  from  crag  to  crag.       That  single- 


ENTERTAINMENT   OF  AN  ENGLISHWOMAN    311 

file  procession,  headed  by  the  Governor,  I  following  in  his 
rear,  took  memory  back  to  many  a  happy  ride  in  Iceland, 
and  many  a  pleasant  day  in  Morocco,  where  the  mountain 
paths  are  similarly  uneven  and  wild.  As  we  wound  round 
the  mountain — over  fifty  in  number — we  often  saw  three 
complete  lines  of  armed  horsemen  below  us,  so  steep  was 
the  serpentine  path  of  our  single-line  cavalcade. 

The  sun  was  shining  in  its  glory.  But  we  were  all 
wearing  sombreros,  and  what  did  sunburnt  and  scorching 
cheeks  matter  when  one  could  command  such  a  view,  and 
had  gone  through  such  an  experience,  such  a  day  of  pic- 
turesque surprises  ? 


312 


CHAPTER     XIX. 


AZTEC    RUINS    OF    XOCIIICALCO. 


Up,  up,  up  we  went,  round  and  round,  backwards  and 
forwards,  our  long  line  of  fifty-three  horses  and  riders  wound 
its  way.  At  times  it  became  so  precipitous  we  could  see 
four  or  five  serpentines  of  horsemen  below  us  on  the 
mountain  side.  The  lake  beneath,  where  many  battles 
were  fought  between  the  Aztecs  and  the  Spaniards,  be- 
came smaller  and  smaller  to  the  south  ;  the  town  of  Cuer- 
navaca,  seventy  miles  to  the  north,  dwindled  to  a  tiny  speck, 
and  still  it  seemed  as  if  we  should  never  reach  the  top. 

Then  in  a  moment,  as  if  a  curtain  had  been  lifted,  we 
clambered  up  an  extra  steep  incline,  and ! 

No  words  can  describe  the  scene.  There  stood  the 
famous  ancient  fortress  of  Xochicalco,  and,  more  than  that, 
the  whole  place  was  alive  with  humanity.  A  couple  of 
hundred  men  at  least  had  come  from  the  villao-es  for  miles 
around  in  order  to  express  their  joy  at  the  Governor's  visit, 
and  there  they  stood,  on  the  patch  of  green  sward  high  up 
on  that  mountain  peak  right  away  in  the  wilds  of  Southern 
Mexico,  where  tropical  vegetation  filled  the  valley  below, 
and  above  only  rocks,  caverns,  carved  stones,  and  history 
yet  unwritten  were  to  be  found. 

Our  horses  all  drew  up  in  a  bunch  ;  Indians  swarmed 
before  us,  while  on  our  right  stood  one  of  the  greatest 
fortresses  of  the  ancient  world.      We  were  officially  received 


<> 


AZTEC  RUINS    OF  XOCHICALCO.  313 

by  the  Jefe  Politico  de  Tetecala,  named   Enrique   Dabaire, 
and  the  Jefe   Politico  de  Cuernavaca,  Rutilio  Balcazar. 

Another  Indian  band  struck  up  the  national  air,  and 
the  five  chief  men  of  the  surrounding  villages  stepped 
forward,  each  bearing  a  couple  of  bouquets  of  wild 
flowers,  and,  with  the  grace  of  kings,  presented  one  to  their 
Governor,  and  one  to  me,  before  we  had  even  dismounted. 
In  such  fashion  the  Aztecs  of  old  greeted  Cortes,  in  such 
fashion  their  descendants  welcomed  us  to-day.  The  same 
type  of  face,  the  same  manner  of  welcome. 

Tears  started  to  my  eyes  on  receiving  those  floral 
offerings,  to  find  rough,  bronzed  men,  the  descendants  ol 
that  great  Aztec  race,  brave  as  lions — one  had  only  to  look 
at  their  faces  to  notice  the  strenoth  and  determination — 
bid  me  welcome,  together  with  a  hearty  handshake.  It  was 
very  touching. 

There  were  the  ruins  of  what  had  once  been  a  fortress, 
here  were  the  descendants  of  the  very  people  who  lived 
there,  two  thousand,  perhaps  five  thousand,  years  ago,  and 
all  around  us  lay  God's  work,  one  of  the  most  beautiful 
panoramas  surely  that  this  world  can  disclose.  We  were  on 
the  top  of  a  sugar-loaf  peak  ;  below  lay  deep  gorges  and 
valleys,  and  miles  and  miles  of  cultivated  plains,  where 
grew  sugar,  rice  and  coffee,  to  be  exported  perhaps  to  feed 
folk  in  that  very  London,  some  thousands  of  miles  away, 
which  held  all  I  loved  most,  not  one  of  whom  was  with  me 
to  enjoy  those  strange  and  wonderful  scenes — and  here, 
what  a  curious  collection  we  made  !  One  Englishwoman — 
one  of  the  few  women  who  have  climbed  to  Xochicalco — a 
couple  of  Englishmen,  an  American,  a  sprinkling  ot 
Spaniards,  or  descendants  of  Spaniards,  and  hundreds  ot 
Indian   Aztecs  ! 

We  lunched  in  a  summer-house  or  canopy  of  flowers  the 
natives  had  erected  for  that  purpose,  because  they  knew 
"there  was   no  sun  in  the  Senora's  land,"  and   they  leared 


314  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

the  heat  for  their  visitor.  The  top  was  composed  of  palm 
leaves,  and  hanging  down,  as  do  grapes  in  a  vinery,  were 
bunches  of  flowers  ;  the  supports  on  which  the  roof  rested, 
were  entirely  covered  with  creepers  and  blossoms.  This 
love  of  flowers,  this  choice  of  beautiful  colours,  the  artistic 
pottery  produced  in  almost  every  village,  denote  the  artistic 
development  of  the  race.  That  bower  of  tropical  vegeta- 
tion would  have  done  honour  to  a. Parisian  florist,  and 
could  not  have  been  bought  by  him  for  thousands  and 
thousands  of  francs. 

I  do  not  quite  know  how  that  luncheon  was  dragged  up  to 
the  ruins — probably  on  men's  backs,  or  on  pack-mules — but 
I  do  know  it  was  ready  when  we  arrived,  and  that  we 
thoroughly  enjoyed  it.  Even  ice,  think  of  it,  ice  was  there, 
thoughtfully  included  in  the  "  bill  of  fare  "  by  the  Governor. 
It  was  a  delicious  repast,  and  I  still  remember  a  particular 
dish  of  scalloped  ham  that  came  out  of  one  of  those  sur- 
prising tins. 

After  the  meal  the  Governor  in  his  usual  thoughtful  way 
gave  all  the  food  that  was  left  to  the  Indians.  The  various 
Alcaldes  and  other  officials  came  into  the  bower  at  his  invita- 
tion to  drink  healths  with  him.  They  had  such  charming 
manners.  Off  came  their  hats,  they  bowed  low,  and  before 
emptying  their  glass  always  raised  it  to  me  with  a  little  incli- 
nation of  the  head.  Inborn  courtesy,  the  inborn  courtesy  of 
gentlemen,  is  more  often  found  among  such  people  than  is 
generally  supposed. 

The  sides  of  our  summer-house  were  open,  and  all  those 
strange  folk  squatted  on  the  ground  around  us,  watching  the 
progress  of  the  meal  ;  they  did  not  talk,  they  just  sat  and 
gazed.  On  our  left  the  constant  clapping  of  hands  was 
heard  where  three  women  made  tortillas  for  the  party, 
otherwise  our  followers  were  all  of  the  masculine  sex. 

Over  the  roof,  standing  amid  wreaths  of  what  we  should 
call   hothouse  flowers,   was  an   inscription  about   three  yards 


Bower  of  orchids,  flowers,  and  palms,  put  up  Ijy  the  Aztec  Indians  at 
Xochicalcu  ruins. 


uf' 


A^'wI^'-'Ij' 


r*^  JxM::^' 


One  of  the  war-plumed  Aztecs  carved  on  the  Xochicalco  ruins. 


[To  fare  />ai:r  314. 


AZTEC  RUINS   OF  XOCHICALCO.  315 

long  which,  to  my  surprise,  consisted  of  the  words  "Well- 
come to  Mrs.  Alec  Fweedie."  The  two  "  I's  "  in  "well- 
come,"  and  the  substitution  of  F.  for  T.,  were  charming- 
touches.  Those  Indians  had  sent  a  messenger  many,  many 
miles  to  Cuernavaca  to  find  out  how  to  write  their  words  of 
greeting  in  the  English  tongue  ;  they  painted  them  quite 
well,  in  grey,  picked  out  with  red,  and  I  finally  bore  the 
inscription  home  in  triumph  from  its  wondrous  perch  and 
unique  surroundings. 

These  people  were  Aztecs.  It  is  commonly  supposed  the 
race  has  died  out,  but  this  is  not  the  case — half  a  million 
live  to-day,  and  still  speak  the  ancient  tongue. 

After  luncheon,  a  short  swarthy  man  stepped  forward, 
bowing  low,  and  addressing  the  Governor  in  Aztec,  he 
asked  if  he  might  say  something  to  the  English  lady  ; 
his  name  was  Florentino  Ramirez,  and  he  came  from  the 
village  of  Tetlama.  Of  course,  permission  was  at  once 
granted.  He  stood  opposite  to  us,  surrounded  by  all  those 
Indians,  and  though  only  a  young  man — perhaps,  twenty- 
two  or  three  years  of  age — he  spoke  as  to  the  manner  born. 
He  was  neither  shy  nor  awkward  ;  his  voice  was  loud  and 
clear,  and  the  determined  expression  of  his  dark  face 
denoted  his  descent  from  some  great  race.  His  words  w^ere 
more  or  less  as  follows  : 

"  I  am  spokesman  of  the  neighbouring  villages.  When  we 
heard  our  beloved  Governor  was  coming,  accompanied  by  a 
lady  from  such  a  far-away  land,  we  felt  proud.  We  are 
honoured  that  anyone  should  come  to  see  our  ruins,  and  we 
thank  you,  Sefiora,  from  the  bottom  of  our  hearts,  for  you 
must  have  undertaken  a  long  and  tedious  journey  to  come  so 
far  to  see  our  Xochicalco.  That  you  are  going  to  write  a 
book  about  Mexico  delights  our  hearts,  and  we  have  come 
from  far  and  near,  and  done  our  best  to  bid  you  welcome  and 
manifest  our  gratitude.  We  are  only  'the  people,'  but  we 
have  hearts  and  sympathies,  and  both  have  been  aroused  to- 


3i6  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

clay  by  the  visit  of  Colonel  Alarcon  and  the  English  author- 
ess. You  have  come  from  a  land  of  great  civilisation  to  visit 
our  wild  country  ;  but,  Sefiora,  you  must  remember  that 
five  thousand  years  ago,  when  Engi<ind  was  unknown, 
our  ancestors  raised  those  ruins,"  and  he  waved  his  hand 
with  a  theatrical  air  as  he  spoke,  and  pointed  proudly  to 
the  fortress. 

Charming  words,  given  with  great  simplicity  and  withal 
great  determination.  The  man  spoke,  as  I  have  said  be- 
fore, as  to  the  manner  born,  and  yet  he  lived  far  away  from 
a  railway,  had  indeed  never  seen  such  a  thing,  or  any  form 
of  modern  civilisation.  He  was  just  an  Indian  lad,  born  and 
bred  in  the  country  ;  but — the  descendant  of  a  great  race  ! 
One  of  my  English  friends  kindly  replied  in  Spanish  ;  when 
he  stopped  the  youth  again  stepped  forward,  and  said  : 

"  You  have  addressed  me  in  a  foreion  tono-ue,  Sefior,  and 
I  thank  you,  and  will  translate  your  words  to  my  other 
friends.  I  can  speak  Spanish  too,  you  see,  a  foreign  tongue 
to  me,  and  I  thank  you  for  what  you  have  said  on  behalf  of 
my  friends.  This  is  a  great  day  for  us  and  we  shall  always 
remember  it.  Such  a  day  has  never  been  before  at  Xochi- 
calco.  We  would  fain  add  that  this  humble  reception, 
although  poor  and  inadequate,  has  been  tendered  with  all 
our  good- will,  and  from  the  bottom  of  our  hearts." 

Was  not  this  wonderful  t  It  all  seemed  extraordinary  to 
me.  The  spot  whereon  we  stood  had  been  the  scene  of 
bloodshed  and  plunder  thousands  of  years  ago  ;  these  very 
hills  even  a  short  time  previously  were  unsafe  for  travellers, 
a  fully-armed  escort  was  necessary,  and  yet  there  we  found 
ourselves  to-day  amidst  flowers  and  beauty,  with  music  and 
merriment,  peace  and  good-will ! 

After  luncheon  we  spent  some  hours  looking  over  the  old 
fortress  which  some  say  was  a  temple,  but  I  think  not,  for 
there  are  no  sis^ns  of  altars,  or  burial  chambers,  and  for 
religious  purposes  it  stands   in  an  awkward  position,  perched 


AZTEC  RUINS    OF  XOCHICALCO.  317 

on  high  with  steep  paths  only  for  ascent.  It  seemed  to  me 
from  its  position  far  more  Hkely  to  have  been  a  fortress.  It 
is  a  square,  and  being  situated  right  at  the  very  top  of  a 
mountain,  it  commands  a  view  on  all  sides  over  miles  and 
miles.  The  base  is  somewhat  plain  ;  above  rest  three  sets 
of  massive  stones,  one  above  the  other,  forming  a  wall  which 
slants  narrower  at  the  top.  As  a  rule  fifteen  of  these  large 
stones — each  about  four  to  six  feet  in  width — compose  a  side. 
They  are  not  all  alike.  Some  are  grey,  some  red,  of  por- 
phyritic  granite,  and  again  we  ask — as  is  usual  when  viewing 
such  ancient  work  — "  How  were  such  enormous  stones 
brought  all  these  miles,  and  dragged  up  that  precipitous 
incline  ?  " 

On  the  top  is  a  magnificently-carved  coping,  from  which 
the  stones  slant  outward  at  the  edge,  to  give  grace  to  the 
whole.  These  wonderful  stones  are  completely  covered  over 
with  strange  devices  and  colossal  figures  ;  there  are  several 
Indians  with  their  massive  war-feather  headgear  wearino- 
jewels  round  their  necks,  and  pondrous  earrings  ;  jewels 
fasten  on  their  feathers,  and  jewels  and  ornaments 
form  breast  -  plates  and  cufTs.  The  figures  are  not 
crude  ;  on  the  contrary  they  are  well  modelled.  Most  of 
them  sit  cross-legged  like  Chinese  gods,  but  one  who  is 
standing,  partly  remains.  The  straight  broad  nose,  and  fore- 
head sloping  backwards,  are  noticeable,  which  remain  pecu- 
liarities of  the  Aztec  race  to-day.  Several  of  the  warriors 
have  the  first  finger  bent  up  as  if  to  call  attention.  There  are 
three  complete  figures,  besides  bits  of  others,  particularly  a 
large  hand  and  arm  which  evidently  belonged  to  the  man 
supporting  the  stair-way,  part  of  which  is  still  in  good  preser- 
vation. Of  course  the  wings  of  the  Aztec  eagle  appear  on 
each  side  of  the  fortress  ;  that  same  eagle  which  forms  the 
coat  of  arms  of  Mexico  to-day.  Serpents  with  two  heads 
are  visible,  for  Aztecs  worshipped  the  Serpent  as  the  God 
of  Wisdom.        Strange    and    wonderful    hieroglyphics    and 


3i8  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

mythological  figures,  and  a  +  can  be  distinctly  seen  on  the 
photograph,  but  alas !  the  key  to  all  these  writings  has 
yet  to  be  found  I 

There  was  originally  a  second  tower  on  the  top  of  the 
edifice — some  imagine  a  third — but  only  a  few  of  the  stones 
remain  upright  to-day  ;  the  rest  have  fallen  down  and  are 
lying  around,  either  whole  or  in  bits  ;  others  have  been 
carted  away  for  building  purposes !  From  the  centre  of  the 
fortress  there  was  a  means  of  escape,  and  it  is  said  seven 
subterranean  passages,  but  the  place  has  so  far  not  been 
very  thoroughly  explored.  We  went  through  one  of  these 
passages,  bumping  our  heads  and  stumbling  over  rocks 
and  stones,  till  we  found  ourselves  in  an  arched  chamber 
excavated  in  the  rock,  the  dome  being  in  the  form  of  a 
pointed  Gothic  arch.  This  was  a  curious  anomaly,  as  the 
arch  scarcely  ever  appeared  in  Aztec  architecture. 

One  of  these  subterranean  passages  extends  many  hun- 
dred feet,  and  is  about  nine  feet  high.  The  ancient  pave- 
ment seems  to  have  been  over  a  foot  thick,  and  the  walls 
are  actually  of  masonry.  At  the  end  is  a  room  measuring- 
eighty  feet.*  The  platform  measures  380  by  285,  and  the 
Temple  or  fortress  65  feet  from  East  to  West,  and  58 
from  North  to  South. 

I  was  enormously  impressed  by  the  Xochicalco  ruins. 
The  position  of  the  fortress  was  grand,  commanding  as  it 
did  so  extensive  a  view  over  what  was  once  a  vast  lake 
lying  towards  Mexico  City  ;  the  solidity  of  the  work,  the 
precision  with  which  the  stones  were  fitted  into  one  another, 
all  was  marvellous  ;  and  yet  a  tiny  sapling,  grown  to  be  a 
great  tree-root,  had  literally  forced  up  one  of  these  blocks 
of  enormous  weight,  forced  it  right  up  out  of  place  ! 

There  was  something  awe-inspiring  about  those  ruins, 
in  fact  they  impressed  me  more  than  did  those  of  Mitla 
subsequently.      The  base  of  the  hill,   on   which  they  stand, 

*   "  Prehistoric    America,"  hy     Nadaillac. 


AZTEC  RUINS    OF  XOCHICALCO.  319 

is  nearly  two  miles  in  circumference,  and  the  last  ascent 
about  400  feet.  The  carving  was  so  extraordinary,  so 
artistic  and  clearly  cut,  the  figures  so  true  to  life,  not  in 
the  'least  grotesque,  as  are  many  of  those  to  be  seen  in 
Egyptian  ruins ;  but  these  had  been  chiselled  by  master 
hands,  no  one  knows  how  many  decades  ago.  The  dresses, 
the  jewels,  all  seemed  to  recall  that  Aztec  race  which  must 
indeed  have  been  a  people  of  great  culture  and  refinement, 
and  artistic  in  a  high  degree. 

The  position  was  well  nigh  impregnable,  for  what  band 
of  warriors  could  climb  up  to  attack,  while  even  a  handful 
of  men  thrust  spears  or  hurled  stones  down  upon  them  ? 
Two  or  three  hours  were  not  sufficient  to  explore  this  inter- 
esting spot,  but  as  there  is  no  accommodation  anywhere  for 
miles,  we  had  to  get  on,  before  the  darkness  of  night 
folded  her  wino-s  around  us. 

o 

It  was  January,  with  a  heat  like  that  of  August  in  Eng- 
land, for  we  were  no  longer  nearly  eight  thousand  feet  above 
the  sea,  as  in  Mexico  City,  and  as  soon  as  one  descends  a 
few  thousand  feet,  the  temperature  changes  to  an  extra- 
ordinary degree.  All  the  various  village  mayors,  the  Jefe 
Politicos  of  the  different  districts,  had  to  be  shaken  hands 
with,   and  then   we  left. 

The  Indians  all  wanted  to  shake  hands  too,  many  spoke 
kindly  words  in  the  Aztec  tongue,  others  brought  further 
little  floral  offerings.  One  of  these  latter  was  particularly 
interesting,  for  it  was  a  flower  of  wood,  a  sort  of  gourd-like 
thing,  quite  pretty  in  shape,  something  like  a  long-leaved 
passion  flower,  only  brown,  but  alas !  it  was  brittle,  and 
although  one  of  our  party  rode  with  it  most  carefully  for 
miles,  petal  after  petal  fell  with  the  jolting  of  his  horse. 

Several  friends  in  the  City  had  asked  me  to  be  photo- 
graphed on  horseback.  They  wished  to  see  my  habit  skirt 
when  mounted  astride,  apparently  thinking  it  must  be  a 
most  unsightly  arrangement,   so,  I  asked  Senor  Gutierrez  to 


320  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

kindly  take  advantage  of  a  shady  spot  and  do  the  deed. 
As  I  spoke,  the  little  man  who  had  made  that  strange 
speech  rushed  forward,  and  placing  himself  at  my  mare's 
head,  asked  if  he  might  be  photographed  with  the  lady. 
Therefore  the  descendant  of  the  Aztec  tribe,  who  proved 
himself  such  an  orator,  is  luckily  in  the  picture. 

Down  the  hill  we  rode  again  in  single  file  ;  the  horses 
are  marvellously  sure-footed,  especially  those  which  are  not 
shod — naturally,  iron  shoes  do  slide  over  volcanic  rock — 
and  away  we  went  to  the  famous  sugar  hacienda  of  Mia- 
catlan.  The  sun  was  just  setting  when  we  arrived  about 
six  o'clock,  and  certainly  the  scene  was  remarkable.  The 
wonderful  old  house  with  its  strange  arches,  domes, 
and  cellars,  which  resembled  an  ancient  monastery,  was,  of 
course,  built  by  the  Spaniards  a  couple  of  hundred  years 
ago.  Time  was  then  of  no  value,  slaves  cost  no  money, 
and  walls  eio-ht  or  ten  feet  thick,  with  vaulted  roofs  made 
of  solid  blocks  of  stone,  were  customary.  These  old 
haciendas  rarely  have  a  bit  of  wood  anywhere  ;  wood  and 
iron  were  not  used  for  girders  and  beams,  and  the  stone 
tioors,  walls  and  roofs  will  probably  stand  to  all  eternity. 
Strangely  enough,  I  at  once  recognised  my  host  and  hostess 
as  old  friends — at  least,  old  friends  for  Mexico.  I  had 
met  Seiior  and  Seilora  Romualdo  Pasquel  at  the  President's 
Christmas  party.  Their  welcome  was  niost  warm,  and  our 
whole  caravan  passed  the  night  at  Miacatlan. 

Imagine  a  party  of  fifty-three  men  and  beasts  pulling  up 
at  an  English  country  house  and  requesting  a  night's  board 
and  lodging !  We  were  a  dozen  for  the  dining-room,  and 
bed-rooms  were  found  for  us,  while  the  rest  of  the  escort 
souQfht  accommodation  elsewhere. 

One  could  scarcely  have  expected  to  find  dinner-table 
decorations  in  a  Mexican  hacienda,  but  such  was  the  case. 
Covers  were  laid  for  twenty — the  house  party  being  eight. 
The     serviettes    were    charmingly    folded,    lovely    tropical 


AZTEC  RUINS   OF  XOCHICALCO.  321 

flowers  were  arranged  upon  the  cloth,  blooms  were  in 
the  finger-bowls,  and  everything  was  as  well-ordered  and 
modern  as  in  a  large  city.  The  cooking  was  perfect, 
the  wines  manifold,  electric  light  everywhere,  yet  all 
the  floors,  even  in  the  bed-rooms,  were  of  red  brick  ; 
just  one  more  instance  of  those  strange  contrasts  one  finds 
so  continually  in  the  land  of  Montezuma.  A  land  indeed 
of  paradoxes ! 

Our  luggage  was  limited,  but  the  Governor  had  arranged 
we  should  each  have  a  bag;  carried  bv  the  mules  with  the 
commissariat.  In  my  small  case,  mostly  containing  under- 
wear, I  had  one  light  silk  evening  gown,  which  folded 
into  small  space,  so  that  I  might  occasionally  look  like  a 
"lady."  That  reminds  me  of  a  man  with  whom  I  had 
ridden  for  some  days.  Never  having  seen  me  in  anything 
but  a  divided  skirt,  linen  shirt,  top  boots,  and  sombrero 
hat,  in  a  faltering  voice  at  last  he  asked  : 

"  Do  you  ever  wear  a  real  dress,  Sefiora  ?  " 

"Oh,  yes,  always  at  home,"  I  replied. 

He  looked  hard  at  me. 

"Do  you  ever  wear  a  low — evening — dress?"  he 
stammered,    as    if    ashamed    to    ask  such  a  question. 

"Often,"  I  answered;  "we  wear  low  dresses  more  in 
London  than  in  any  city  of  the  world,  because  we  practically 
dress  for  dinner  every  evening." 

"Oh,"  he  gasped,  evidently  much  relieved  that  people 
did  not  walk  about  London  in  a  riding  dress  ! 

Someone  had  given  me  a  box  of  chocolates  on  leaving 
Cuernavaca,  and  when  I  opened  my  box  at  Miacatlan  to 
take  out  that  precious  silk  dress,  my  hand  encountered 
something  hot  and  liquid.  It  was  the  chocolates,  which 
had  melted  to  a  syrup !  Luckily  my  only  frock  had 
escaped. 

Everything  in  that  small  case  was  so  hot,  it  felt  as 
though    it    had  but   just  been    taken  out  of  an  oven,  and 

21 


322  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

yet  the  force  of  the  baking  sun  had  been  partially  checked 
by  grass  mattings  tied  over  the  packs. 

We  were  up  next  morning  before  four  a.m.,  and  started 
off  soon  after,  in  order  to  avoid  riding  during  the  heat  of  the 
day.  A  strange  sight  presented  itself  below  my  window. 
It  was  quite  dark,  save  for  the  flicker  of  the  moon  and 
stars ;  but  there  stood  all  the  horses  saddled  and  ready, 
champing  at  their  bits  ;  there,  groping  about  in  the  semi- 
darkness,  were  the  Rurales  with  clinking  spurs  and  gleam- 
ing swords,  while  behind  stood  the  servants  and  pack 
mules ;  beyond  were  some  three  hundred  farm  mules 
.  drinkinof  in  turn  at  the  fountain,  before  Q-oinQf  off  to  their 
work  in  the  fields,  which  consisted  of  bringing  in  the  sugar- 
cane. The  sky  was  still  dark,  electric  lights  illuminated 
the  heavy  stone  alcoves,  birds  were  singing,  and  the  great 
chapel  bell  rang  forth  the  hour  of  five  as  we  bade  farewell 
to  our  generous  entertainers  and  started  again  on  our  way. 
We  were  glad  of  our  coats  in  the  fresh  morning  air,  and 
equally  glad  to  dispense  with  them  an  hour  and  a  half  later, 
when  the  sun  had  risen. 

We  breakfasted  at  ten  o'clock  in  a  wonderful  tropical 
garden  in  the  village  of  Coatlan,  on  our  way  to  the  famous 
caves  of  Cacahuimilpa.  That  village  was  particularly 
interesting,  it  was  so  typically  Mexican.  The  people, 
knowing  we  were  coming,  had  cut  large  branches  off  trees 
and  stuck  them  into  the  sides  of  the  road  for  a  mile  out- 
side the  village  itself,  so  as  to  form  a  kind  of  avenue. 
Every  man,  woman  and  child  was  out  to  receive  us.  They 
had  erected  a  triumphal  arch,  their  brass  band  struck  up  as 
we  passed  beneath  it,  and  everyone  stood  hat  in  hand 
to  welcome  our  party.  A  table  had  been  set  up  in  the 
orange  grove,  and  there,  beneath  oranges,  bananas,  cocoa- 
nuts  and  melon  trees,  we  enjoyed  our  meal.  The  endless 
hand-clapping  of  tortilla-makers  was  with  us  as  usual,  for 
the  women  had  come  to  the   garden,   made  their  little  fires, 


AZTEC  RUINS   OF  XOCHICALCO.  323 

and  were  busy  making  cakes  for  our  party.  The  horses 
stood  in  the  Httle  market-place  below  the  church;  their 
saddles  covered  with  extra  sacking  to  keep  them  from 
getting  heated,  but  in  spite  of  the  coverings  mine  became  so 
scorched  I  was  hardly  able  to  sit  upon  it.  Hot  saddles  are 
dangerous,  and  so  well  do  the  Rurales  know  this  fact,  that 
when  waiting  they  put  their  big  grey  felt  hats  over  the 
leathers  to  keep  them  cool,  and  are  content  with  a 
handkerchief  upon  their  own  heads. 

It  is  said  that  no  white  man  can  ever  pack  a  mule,  and 
certainly  the  dark  gentlemen  often  excited  my  amazement 
by  the  way  in  which  they  secured  heavy  wine  cases  to  the 
backs  of  the  animals,  and  then  covered  the  whole  load 
with  a  grass  mat  ;  it  was  wonderful.  Nothing  ever  slipped, 
nothing  ever  went  wrong.  The  only  sad  part  about  it 
was  the  heat  itself,  and  every  night  I  used  to  find  every- 
thing inside  my  little  case  absolutely  melting,  including  the 
soap,  which  had  nearly  turned  "soft,"  though,  luckily,  it 
did  not  run,  like  those  chocolates.  But  this  great 
heat  only  lasts  a  few  hours  daily,  say  from  twelve  to 
three. 

Talking  of  pack  mules  reminds  me  of  an  awkward 
experience.  On  one  occasion,  while  toiling  up  an  exceed- 
ingly steep  path,  we  suddenly  met  thirty-three  mules  laden 
crossways  with  planks  of  sawn  wood,  coming  down.  They 
only  had  three  drivers,  and  the  path  was  so  narrow  it 
seemed  practically  impossible  to  pass.  I  do  not  even  now 
understand  how  the  difficulty  was  overcome,  but  some  of  our 
party  dismounted  and  succeeded  in  finding  the  animals  a 
foothold  off  our  track  ;  still,  as  their  planks  were  some  ten 
feet  long,  the  slightest  deviation  from  the  straight  line  on 
the  part  of  the  beasts  of  burden  would  have  meant  a  nasty 
hit  for  some  of  us,  while  a  restive  mule  or  horse  must  have 
fallen  down  the  precipice.  Neither  of  the  parties  could  go 
back,  there  was  no   room  to  turn,  therefore   pass   we  must, 

21* 


324  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

and  pass  we  did  ;  but  I  think  everyone  felt  devoutly  thankful 
when  the  manoeuvre  was  accomplished  without  accident. 

The  country  policemen  are  very  funny.  We  often 
passed  two  or  three,  perhaps  a  dozen  of  them.  They  are 
simply  Indians,  shoeless,  and  garbed  in  the  ordinary  white 
cotton  ;  but  they  each  carry  an  old-fashioned  shot  gun,  and 
of  course  the  big  sword  (machete)  of  the  country.  They  are 
not  particularly  gentle  in  their  treatment  of  prisoners,  and 
make  use  of  their  weapons  on  the  slightest  provocation. 
Prisoners,  who  after  trial  are  found  to  have  merited  a  long 
sentence,  are  imprisoned  for  a  while  and  then  drafted  into  the 
army. 

It  all  seems  to  answer  very  well,  but  then  Mexico  is,  of 
course,  still  in  the  transition  stage.  If  she  go  as  much 
ahead,  however,  in  the  next  quarter  of  a  century  as  she 
has  done  in  the  last,  she  will  ere  long  take  her  place 
among  the  nations  of  the  world. 

I  remember  one  large  hacienda  we  passed,  where  a 
tragedy  had  just  been  enacted.  A  Mexican  father  lived 
there  with  his  two  sons,  and  experienced  considerable 
difficulty  with  the  peons,  whom  his  sons  in  their  turn 
treated  somewhat  harshly,  knocking  them  about.  The 
natives  were  sullen,  and  vowed  vengeance.  For  some  time 
none  of  the  trio  ever  ventured  forth  alone,  but  always  went 
about  armed  and  guarded.  One  fine  day,  however,  the 
eldest  son,  tired  of  his  escort,  started  forth  to  ride  to  some 
distant  village.  He  never  returned,  and  I  was  shown  the 
spot  where  the  murdered  body,  stabbed  from  behind  in 
several  places,   had  been  found  ! 

"  The  younger  son  will  meet  the  same  fate,"  was  remarked, 
"  unless  he  mends  his  ways  in  dealing  with  his  labourers." 

And  yet  there  are  other  people,  such,  for  example,  as  the 
Amor  brothers,  who  are  so  much  beloved  that  they  ride 
anywhere  alone  fearlessly,  and  as  often  as  not  unarmed. 

Indians  are  slow  to  rouse  ;  but   they  value  life  little,  and 


AZTEC  RUINS   OF  XOCHICALCO.  3^5 

grow   murderous    and  vindictive     on    occasion,    particularly 
when  under  the  influence  of  drink. 

Those  days  of  riding  through  the  mountains  amid  all 
the  tropical  vegetation — so  new  to  me — were  delightful ; 
even  the  scorpions  and  yellow  and  green  lizards  were 
interesting,  and  then  everyone  was  so  kind  and  jovial, 
courteous  and  thoughtful,  there  never  seemed  to  occur  a 
hitch  of  any  sort.  The  Governor's  powers  of  organisation 
proved  a  constant  marvel.  We  were  away  from  trains 
and  telegraphs,  he  was  moving  with  a  small  army,  so  to 
speak,  and  yet  nothing  was  ever  late,  and  nothing  was 
ever  missing.  Our  fare  was  of  the  best — everything 
canned,  of  course — and  even  ice  never  failed,  a  veritable 
blessing  in  such  heat.  Colonel  Alarcon's  soldierly  instincts 
showed  him  a  born  commander  of  men  ;  he  never  seemed 
lacking  in  resources,  never  got  in  a  fuss  ;  indeed,  he 
appeared  to  have  less  to  do  than  anyone,  though  all  the 
time  he  was  organising  the  whole  affair. 

Some  men  are  born  to  rule  and  direct  others.  Colonel 
Alarcon  is  one  of  these,  for  was  he  not  the  finest  of 
soldiers  ?  With  all  this  strength  of  character  nothing  was 
beneath  his  notice.  If  we  passed  over  a  dangerous  bit  of 
ground,  or  crossed  a  river  where  the  bank  was  slippery,  he, 
leading  the  way,  would  turn  round  and  ask : 

"  Is  the  Sefiora  all  right  .^  " 

"  Si,  si  ;  muchas  gracias  ;  but  you  know  I  am  all  right," 
I  once  replied. 

"  I  like  to  see  and  hear  for  myself,  Sefiora,"  he  answered. 

He  would  stop  to  pick  some  unusual  flower  to  show  me 
by  the  way,  or  pull  a  wild  fruit  he  wished  me  to  taste  ; 
in  fact,  he  proved  again  what  is  so  true  in  life,  that  the 
strongest  men  have  the  softest  sides  to  their  characters, 
just  as  the  most  womanly  women  can  evince  manly  courage 
on  occasion. 


326 


CHAPTER  XX. 

ONE  OF  THE  WONDERS  OF  THE  WORLD, 

It  was  fearfully  hot  as  after  luncheon  we  rode  down 
from  the  little  hostelry  in  the  village  of  Cacahuimilpa — 
pronounced  Ca-ca-hui-mil-pa — to  the  grottoes  of  the  same 
name. 

At  mid-day  the  heat  in  Southern  Mexico  is  almost  over- 
powering, and  but  for  our  enormous  sombreros,  we  could 
not  have  endured  it.  The  horses  rarely  stumbled  over  the 
volcanic  rocks,  often  as  steep  as  a  staircase,  and  far  more 
uneven  ;  but  horses  get  accustomed  to  anything,  and  the 
Mexican  breed  are  no  exception  to  this  rule  ;  nevertheless, 
on  the  return  journey,  one  of  the  poor  beasts  unfortunately 
slipped  and  tumbled  over  a  nasty  ledge,  his  rider  cutting  his 
head  badly.  He  was  not  able  to  leave  Cacahuimilpa  with 
us  the  next  morning,  but  followed  some  hours  later  with 
the  guard  our  good  Governor  left  behind  to  look  after  him. 
We  had  so  many  Rurales  with  us,  we  could  easily  spare 
three  for  the  purpose.  They  were  all  most  polite  men,  ever 
eager  to  perform  some  kindly  act,  shade  a  saddle,  tighten 
girths,  flick  away  mosquitoes,  and  in  fact  do  anything  they 
could  think  of  to  add  to  my  comfort.  Instinctive  courtesy, 
perhaps,  to  such  a  strange  being  as  a  horsewoman  ! 

The  Rurales  often  use  flint  and  steel  for  kindling  fires. 
They  are  most  handy  men,  reminding  me  of  sailors  by 
their  willingness    and   ability    to    do    almost    anything    and 


ONE  OF  THE    WONDERS   OF   THE    WORLD.     327 

everything  ;  unlike  the  majority  of  sailors,  however,  they 
are  crack  shots  as  well  as  skilled  horsemen,  to  which 
qualities  the  peace  of  Mexico    is    largely   due   to-day. 

When  w^e  dismounted  at  a  large  cave-like  opening  in  a 
wall  of  rock,  the  national  air  of  Mexico  sounded  suddenly 
from  the  dark  depths  below.  The  village  band  had  been 
sent  on  before,  to  Q-reet  us.  The  effect  was  most  strano-e  in 
its  echoing  tones,  and  the  national  anthem  was  followed  by 
the  President  Diaz  march.  The  aperture  was  large,  but 
behind  the  great  opening  loomed  inky  blackness.  Gathered 
round  the  mouth  of  the  cave  were  numberless  Indians,  and 
a  sprinkling  of  richer  folk.  Candles  were  distributed  to 
the  company,  which  by  this  time  must  have  swelled  in 
numbers  to  something  like  a  couple  of  hundred,  as  many 
people  round  about  had  availed  themselves  of  the  oppor- 
tunity of  joining  our  party,  permission  to  do  so  having 
been  graciously  given  them  by  the  Governor. 

"You  had  better  leave  your  hat,"  someone  remarked, 
"  It  may  be  warm  inside  the  caves,  and  besides,  in  the  low 
passages  there  will  be  no  room  for  it."  Accordingly,  the 
sombrero  was  left  behind,  for  which  I  felt  heartily  thankful 
later.  My  friend  also  advised  me  to  put  on  shoes  instead 
of  riding  boots,  explaining  the  climb  would  be  difficult  in 
parts,  and  my  boots  would  probably  get  cut.      He  was  right ! 

Colonel  Alarcon,  accordino-  to  custom,  offered  me  his  arm, 
and  escorted  me  down  into  one  of  the  greatest  wonders  of 
the  world  ! 

The  descent  was  easy,  for  a  road-way  had  been  made  ; 
but  it  was  really  very  impressive  to  see,  in  twos  and  twos, 
about  a  couple  of  hundred  people  marching  solemnly  into 
impenetrable  blackness,  to  the  strains  of  martial  music. 
Each  person  carried  a  long  lighted  candle,  but  before  we 
returned  to  our  starting  point,  six  and  a  half  hours  later, 
those  candles  had  nearly  burnt  out. 

"  The  caves  are  wonderful,"  evervone  had   told  me  ;  but 


328  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

no  one  had  attempted  to  explain  how  wonderful,  simply 
because  no  words  could  fitly  describe  them.  Those  who 
have  seen  the  well-known  Mammoth  Caves  of  Kentucky, 
unanimously  agree  even  they  are  not  so  grand  or  mar- 
vellous as  these  almost  unknown  wonders  buried  in 
Southern  Mexico. 

For  four  hours  we  walked  on,  tumbling,  stumbling, 
clattering,  or  crawling — no  one  should  try  to  penetrate,  or 
attempt  to  go  beyond  the  first  two  easy  caverns,  who  is  not 
physically  strong.  We  had  been  up  at  four  that  morning, 
had  driven  for  a  couple  of  hours,  and  ridden  for  three,  and 
I  must  own  that  before  we  left  those  monstrous  caves  I  was 
quite  done  up,  and  feel  it  only  right  to  advise  no  woman  to 
attempt  the  same  feat  unless  she  can  sleep  at  the  village, 
or  in  the  caves  themselves,  the  night  before  and  the  night 
after ;  those  grottoes  are  quite  enough  for  anyone  to  explore 
in  a  single  day,  without  any  other  exercise  whatever. 

Now  to  attempt  to  give  some  little  idea  of  the  caves. 
They  were  originally  formed  by  a  river,  the  water-line  of 
which  is  distinctly  visible,  while  in  places  the  ground  is 
marked  with  wave-ripples  like  the  sand  of  a  beach.  Then, 
again,  many  stones  are  round  and  polished,  the  result  of 
constant  rolling  by  water  ;  and  still  more  wonderful,  two 
rivers  flow  beneath  them,  probably  through  caves  just  as 
marvellous,  which  no  man  has  yet  dared  penetrate.  These 
two  rivers  which  come  out  beneath  the  caves  are  called 
San  Jeromino  and  San  Corralejo.  The  first  has  been 
measured  and  found  to  contain  a  minimum  flow  of  water 
of  5.5  cubic  metres  per  second.  The  other  has  not  yet 
been  measured,  but  is  supposed  to  contain  about  four 
cubic  metres  per  second.  They  join  and  enter  the  moun- 
tain one  hundred  metres  below  the  grottoes,  under  which 
they  pass,  reappearing  after  a  fall  of  five  hundred  feet  at 
a  distance  of  three  kilometres.  No  boat  has  ever  entered 
the    enormous    caverns    throuQ-h    which    these   rivers   flow. 


ONE   OF   THE    WONDERS   OF   THE    WORLD.      329 

because,  with  waters  rushing  at  such  velocity,  and  a  fall  of 
five  hundred  feet,  it  would  be  madness  to  attempt  to  do 
so.  Plans  have  been  suggested  of  letting  a  boat  in  with 
trusty  ropes  and  grappling  irons  to  pull  her  back  ;  but 
there  mieht  be  within  a  sudden  fall  of  water,  and  boat 
and  occupants  be  whirled  over  the  edge  before  the  people 
outside  had  time  to  drag  them  back.  Mysterious  and 
marvellous  are  the  rivers  below  the  caves. 

Above  these  torrents  of  water  are  the  caves  themselves, 
which  form  undoubtedly  one  of  the  greatest  natural  pheno- 
mena of  the  world  ;  and  they,  too,  were  made  by  water. 
That  very  same  water  which  in  millions  of  years  washed  them 
out  and  is  now  busily  engaged  in  washing  out  others  below  ! 

Very  little  is  yet  known  of  these  wonderful  caves  of 
Cacahuamilpa,  and  some  geologist  has  a  great  work  waiting 
for  him.  In  all  my  wanderings  I  have  never  seen  anything 
like  them.  Niagara  is  great  ;  the  rapids  of  Uleaborg  in 
Finland  are  wonderful.  The  Matterhorn  or  Mont  Blanc 
are  splendid.  These  caves,  however,  are  so  endless,  so 
extraordinary,  so  colossal,  that  it  seems  as  if  they  cannot 
possibly  be  real. 

One  sits  down  amazed  to  see  a  cavern  lighted  at  different 
points  by  half-a-dozen  magnesium  wires,  and  at  least  two 
hundred  candles,  yet  which  is  barely  illumined  at  all.  One 
keeps  on  repeating,  "Am  I  awake  ?  Is  this  real  or  is  it  a 
dream  ?  What  power  made  these  things  ?  What  is  man 
or  man's  work,  what  is  the  greatest  cathedral  in  the  world 
compared  with  this  '^.  " 

I  believe  we  went  through  about  seven  caverns,  and  our 
party  of  two  hundred  Indians  all  carrying  lights,  barely  made 
a  flicker  in  that  intense  gloom — lights  were  nothing  in  the 
vast  space.  Rockets  were  sent  up — rockets  which  were 
known  to  ascend  two  hundred  and  fifty  feet,  but  which 
nowhere  reached  the  top ;  the  height  is  more  probably 
somewhere  about  five  or  six  hundred  feet,  or  twice  that  of 


330  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

St.  Paul's  Cathedral  ;  who  could  tell  in  that  obscurity  ? 
Think  of  a  stone  roof,  without  any  supports,  over  a  stone 
chamber,  inside  which  one  St.  Paul's  on  the  top  of  another 
might  be  placed  ! 

The  size  alone  appalled,  but  the  stalactites  and  stalagmites 
almost  petrified  one  with  amazement.  Many  of  them  have 
joined,  making  rude  pillars  a  couple  of  hundred  feet  high, 
and  perhaps  a  hundred  feet  in  diameter  at  the  base.  Others 
have  formed  grotesque  shapes.  A  seal  upon  the  ground  is 
positively  life-like  ;  a  couple  of  monster  Indian  idols  ;  faces 
and  forms  innumerable  ;  here  an  old  woman  bent  nearly 
double,  there  a  man  with  a  basket  on  his  head,  thrones  fit 
for  kings,  organs  with  every  pipe  visible,  which,  when 
tapped,  ring  forth  deep  tones.  It  was  all  so  great,  so 
wonderful,  so  marvellous  ;  I  felt  all  the  time  as  if  I  were  in 
some  strange  cathedral — greater,  grander  and  more  im- 
pressive than  any  I  had  ever  entered.  Its  aspect  of  power 
and  strength  paralysed  me,  not  with  fear  but  with  intense 
admiration. 

I  am  no  Qeolosist,  but  one  or  two  thiuQ-s  struck  me. 
Many  of  the, stalactites  and  stalagmites  are  white,  of  purest 
crystal ;  they  might  be  of  soda  hanging  in  fringes  ;  others 
again  are  of  black,  muddy  compound,  while  yet  another 
kind  look  like  marble.  Even  to  this  day  the  drip,  drip, 
continues,  small  ones  are  constantly  forming ;  and  in  wet 
weather  the  floor  of  the  caverns  becomes  swampy. 
^I'  People  have  penetrated  four  or  five  kilometres  into  the 
caves,  but  have  found  no  way  out  save  the  entrance  ;  and  at 
one  spot  not  far  within,  is  a  cairn  of  stones  erected  in 
memory  of  a  man  whose  skeleton,  with  that  of  his  dog,  was 
found  some  few  years  ago. 

No  one  should  ever  enter  alone,  because  no  one  could 
ever  find  his  way  out  again. 

The  Empress  Carlotta  made  a  famous  visit  there,  and  on 
one  of  the  stalagmites  the   fact  is  recorded,  but  it  is  beyond 


ONE   OF  THE    WONDERS   OF   THE    WORLD.      331 

that  point  climbing  becomes  most  troublesome  and  danger- 
ous, and  the  effects  more  wonderful. 

Everyone  of  our  party  felt  as  if  he  were  in  a  Turkish  bath, 
beads  of  perspiration  stood  on  every  brow,  and  yet  it  was 
not  safe  to  sit  for  more  than  a  moment,  the  stones  strike  so 
cold.  There  are  a  couple  of  streams  of  clear  water,  and  the 
biscuits,  brandy  and  whiskey  wisely  taken  by  the  thoughtful 
Governor,  proved  a  godsend. 

At  times  it  was  terribly  stiff  climbing,  and  several  of  the 
party  had  nasty  falls,  our  candles  giving  very  inefficient 
light  ;  at  others  it  was  a  case  of  sitting  down  and  sliding 
in  order  to  get  from  one  boulder  to  another  ;  but  it  was 
worth  it  all,  to  see  such  a  sight,  to  feel  the  Power  that 
made  those  caves,  to  bow  before  the  Almighty  Hand  which 
had  accomplished  such  work  even  in  millions  of  years. 
There  hung  those  great  stone  roofs  without  support  of  any 
kind — what  architect  could  have  performed  such  a  miracle  ? 
There  stood  those  majestic  pillars  embedded  in  rocks 
above  and  below  ;  there  hung  yards  and  yards  of  stalactites 
weighing  tons,  and  yet  no  stay  or  girder  kept  them  in 
place.  It  was  a  lesson,  a  chapter  in  religion,  something 
solemn  and  soul-stirring,  something  never  to  be  forgotten  ; 
one  of  the  Creator's  great  mysteries,  where  every  few  yards 
presented  some  fresh  revelation. 

My  knees  were  trembling,  every  rag  of  clothing  I  wore  was 
as  wet  as  when  first  taken  from  the  washerwoman's  tub, 
yet  still  I  struggled  on,  fascinated,  bewildered,  awed,  by 
the  sights  which  met  me  at  every  step.  Think  of  it ! 
Stumbling  along  for  four  and  a  half  hours,  even  then  not 
reaching  the  end,  and  though  we  returned  by  the  easiest 
and  quickest  way  it  was  two  hours  more  before  we  found 
the  exit  ! 

In  one  of  the  caves  the  Governor  proposed  my  health, 
and  the  party  gave  three  cheers,  which  resounded  a^rain 
and  again    in   that   wonderful   subterranean   chamber,  deep 


332  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

down  in  the  bowels  of  the  earth,  with  a  mountain  above 
and  a  couple  of  rivers  below.  The  military  band  of 
Cacahuimilpa  accompanied  us,  and  the  effect  produced  by 
their  music  was  stupendous.  No  words  can  express  the 
volume  of  sound ;  because  the  largest  band  in  the  world 
could  not  succeed  in  producing  the  same  effect  of  reson- 
ance in  the  open  air  which  ten  performers  caused  in  those 
underground  chambers. 

I  have  given  no  idea  of  the  immense  grandeur  of  Caca- 
huimilpa, because  it  is  impossible  for  me  to  do  so.  I  have 
stood  beneath  the  domes  of  St.  Paul's  in  London,  of  St. 
Peter's  in  Rome,  of  St.  Ysaak  in  St.  Petersburg,  of  the 
Capitol  in  Washington,  but  all  those  buildings  are  small 
and  insignificant  in  height  and  size  when  compared  with 
some  of  those  caverns. 

We  talk  of  "  Before  Christ "  as  very  long  ago  ;  we 
think  of  Aztec  remains  a  few  thousand  years  since  as  an 
eternity  distant,  but  what  millions  and  millions  of  years  it 
must  have  taken  for  drops  of  water,  yes,  drops  of  water, 
to  accomplish  such  things  as  these. 

In  such  scenes  one  might  fancy  the  death-cry  of  depart- 
ing spirits,  expect  to  find  chattering  witches  presiding  over 
those  weird  natural  altars,  or  hideous  gnomes  squatting  on 
yonder  projecting  rock.  Those  caves  contain  the  majesty 
of  the  Brocken,  the  weirdness  of  Peer  Gynt  ! 

A  silence  that  can  be  felt,  a  silence  so  profound  it  may 
almost  be  heard  ;  nothing  ruffles  the  air,  no  vibrations  are 
apparent.  All  is  still,  more  still,  indeed,  than  the  grave 
itself. 

Who  made  all  this }  What  power  rent  those  rocks  ? 
What  hand  holds  that  monstrous  dome  of  stone  on  high  ? 

Man  is  silent  ;  but  in  this  all-pervading  silence,  surely 
the  voice  of  God  speaks  ! 

Hot,  tired,  and  overpowered,  we  were  plodding  home- 
wards   in    utter   silence,   when   a    letter    was    handed    to    a 


Telegrafos  del  Gobierno  de  Morelos. 


Sr 


-.'c-c. 


i'.-<.\,.Vft,      'T>0Xvt-<' , 


^\\o_i2]-- 


til 


^SMk^A^Uao^  — 


:mjAf!:^rsL 


.^  Sy-,/.^^        ^^vaO^    5. 


i/X  VWh-o-i-j.  <x» 


Telegram  announcing  the  death  (jf   (^uecn  \'ictoria.      Received  in  Caves  of 
Cacahuimilpa. 


To/acc/>ajrc'333.} 


ONE   OF  THE    WONDERS   OF   THE    WORLD.      333 

member  of  the  party,  by  a  mounted  soldier,  who,  seeing 
our  lights  approaching  the  entrance,  had  dared  venture 
into  the  grottoes  to  deliver  his  missive.  We  were  all  sur- 
prised at  the  man's  arrival,  and  more  surprised  to  find  he 
carried  an  envelope.  It  turned  out  to  be  a  telegram,  which 
had  followed  our  party  from  a  village  a  long  distance  off, 
and  had  been  sent  on  by  a  special  horseman  with  instruc- 
tions to  overtake  us  at  all  speed.  Was  ever  telegram 
received  amid  stranger  surroundings,  by  a  cosmopolitan 
collection  of  humanity  assembled  in  the  bowels  of  the  earth 
far,  far  away  from  civilisation  ? 

What  news  that  telegram  contained !  It  had  travelled 
seven  thousand  miles  across  land  and  sea  ;  it  had 
arrived  at  a  moment  when  we  all  were  over-awed  by  the 
stupendous  grandeur  of  our  surroundings,  and  thoroughly 
worn  out  with  fatigue.  At  the  first  glance  it  seemed  im- 
possible to  read.  Men  accustomed  to  the  vagaries  of 
foreign  telegraph  clerks  when  dealing  with  the  English 
language,  found,  however,  no  difficulty  in  deciphering  its 
meaning  : 

"QUEEN   VICTORIA   WAS    DEAD." 

On  the  opposite  page  is  a  copy  of  the  original  document  ; 
a  historic  telegram,  truly,  announcing  a  national  calamity, 
and  received  amid  the  wildest  possible  surroundings,  in  the 
strangest  possible  way. 

The  Queen  was  dead  !  The  English-speaking  people 
had  lost  her  who  had  been  their  figure-head  for  nearly 
sixty-three  years.  The  monarch  to  whom  the  whole  world 
paid  homage  as  a  woman,  and  respect  as  a  Queen,  had 
died  at  Osborne  on  the  previous  day,  while  we,  wandering 
over  those  Aztec  ruins  of  Xochicalco,  had  not  even  heard 
of  her  illness. 

Impressed  as  we  were  by  the  mystic  grandeur  of  the 
caves,  amazed  at  the  wonders  of  nature,  this  solemn  news 


334  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

seemed  to  fit  the  serious  thoughts  of  the  day,  thoughts 
which  had  grown  in  intensity  with  each  succeeding  hour. 
Cacahuimilpa  appeared  a  fitting  spot  in  which  to  hear  of 
a  great  public  misfortune.  Time  and  place  for  once  were 
in  no  wise  "out  of  tune." 

The  Queen  was  dead  !  And  within  twenty-four  hours 
the  news  was  known  in  the  depths  of  the  earth  in  one  of 
Nature's  grandest  cathedrals,  thousands  of  miles  distant 
from  where  Victoria  the  Good  drew  her  last  breath. 

It  was  dark,  and  the  way  steep  as  we  rode  back  to  the 
village  in  profound  silence. 


San  Galnicl  hacit-nda. 


To  face  page  335.] 


335 


CHAPTER  XXI. 

LIFE    ON    A    SOUTHERN    HACIENDA. 

The  experiences  of  that  night  at  Cacahuimilpa  were 
amusing.  One  large  room,  through  which  everyone  in 
the  house  was  obliged  to  pass,  had  been  divided  in  two  by 
means  of  sheets  hung  in  the  middle  for  curtains,  but  as  these 
reached  neither  the  top,  bottom,  nor  even  sides  of  the 
room,  they  did  not  form  a  very  efficient  wall !  Two  beds 
were  placed  on  each  side  of  the  primitive  screen,  and 
behind  the  curtains  Sefiorita  Flores  and  I  retired.  She 
thought  the  accommodation  strange  and  terrible,  but  to  me 
it  seemed  quite  luxurious  after  nights  spent  in  tents,  on 
tables,  garden  seats,  or  sometimes  the  bare  floor.  My  com- 
panion was  very  tired.  No  wonder.  Such  an  expedition 
was  exhausting  for  anyone  ;  to  a  little  Spanish  girl  not  accus- 
tomed to  exercise  it  must  have  been  deadly.  At  last  she 
sat  herself  down  on  the  bed  exclaiming,  in  her  pretty 
accent  : 

"  I  am  too  tired  to  talk  the  English,  but  I  am  much 
content  with  you."  The  first  was  so  possible,  the  second  a 
literal  translation  from  the  Spanish  ! 

A  plaster  partition  separated  us  from  the  next  apartment 
used  as  a  dining-room,  but  the  plaster  did  not  come  within 
twenty-four  inches  of  the  open  wood  roofing,  through  which 
we  could  see  the  stars,  and  pigeons  flying  in  and  out.     This 
next   room  was  again  divided  by   curtains,  one  part  being 


336  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

arranofed  for  our  meals,  the  other  contained  six  beds 
closely  packed  together  in  a  double  row  into  which  eight  of 
our  men  had  to  stow  themselves !  We  all  laughed  and 
made  the  best  of  it  ;  and  the  best  on  this  occasion  ended 
very  happily,  probably  owing  to  a  reaction  after  the 
impressiveness  of  the  caves,  and  the  tidings  of  the  death  of 
the  Queen. 

We  felt  tired  that  night,  every    man  acknowledged  the- 
fact  ;  but  sleep  works  marvels,  and  when  next  morning  we 
sat  round  the  breakfast  table  enjoying  our  coffee  we  were 
quite  ready  for  another  day  "  across  country." 

The  horses  and  our  soldier-guard  outside  the  little 
dwelling  created  quite  a  sensation,  and  crowds  of  Indians 
sat  about  staring  at  the  wondrous  show. 

Here,  as  in  other  parts  of  the  country,  I  noticed  a 
number  of  men  with  strange  white  or  blue  patches  on  their 
brown  skins,  due  to  pinto,  that  much-dreaded  disease,  called 
by  the  natives  Saltsayanolitzth.  It  is  supposed  mosquitoes 
carry  it  as  they  are  known  to  do  yellow  fever,  and  the  Indians 
use  a  particular  plant  named  Ixtenetztik  for  its  cure,  though 
the  remedy  does  not  usually  prove  very  successful.  Some 
of  the  people  were  more  or  less  covered  with  this  horrible 
disease,  which  is  a  severe  form  of  ringworm.  Dr.  Patrick 
Manson,  the  great  authority  on  tropical  diseases,  tells  me 
he  considers  pinto  is  contagious,  and  doubts  the  Mexican 
theory  of  mosquito  transport. 

There  are  four  kinds  of  pinto — red,  blue,  indigo  and 
white,  the  last  being  the  worst,  for  that  means  losing  the 
pigments  of  the  skin.  In  its  early  stages  pinto  can  some- 
times be  stopped  by  cauterization,  but  later  mercury  is 
required.  Unfortunately,  once  it  really  begins  it  is  almost 
impossible  to  eradicate,  and  often  increases  with  alarming- 
rapidity.  The  disease  is  hideous,  something  like  leprosy, 
which  also  exists  in  Mexico,  where  it  is  not  "separated," 
unfortunately.       Oddly  enough,   insanity  is  practically  un- 


LIFE   ON  A    SOUTHERN  HACIENDA.  337 

known  in  that  country,  although  the  people  intermarry 
constantly.  The  "  natural  "  of  every  Scotch  village  appar- 
ently has  no  existence.  The  people  suffer  from  small-pox, 
originally  introduced  by  the  Spanish  conquerors,  leprosy, 
pinto,  and  goitre,  but  their  children  are  not  imbecile. 

The  morning  after  our  expedition  to  the  caves  we  rose 
early,  in  order  to  accomplish  as  much  as  possible  before 
the  sun  became  powerful,  and  rode  some  twenty-five  miles 
to  the  famous  hacienda  of  St.  Gabriel  where  we  were  to 
spend  the  night.  This  is  one  of  the  most  historic  and 
quaint  haciendas  in  Southern  Mexico,  and  belongs  to  the 
well-known  family  of  Amor. 

In  all  probability  it  was  built  for  a  monastery  ;  it  looks 
like  the  work  of  monks.  The  enormous  thickness  of  the 
walls,  which  keep  out  heat  in  summer  and  cold  in  winter, 
the  extraordinary  solidity  of  everything,  and  the  vast  space 
it  covers,  bespeak  a  religious  house.  At  the  back  is  a 
fine  stone  swimming-bath  ;  indeed,  it  is  well  supplied,  not 
only  with  necessities,  but  luxuries. 

What  a  place  for  romance,  what  stories  might  be  told  of 
love,  intrigue,  murder,  in  such  a  house  as  this.  With  its 
long  corridors,  numerous  chambers,  strange  balconies,  its 
church,  shop,  greSt  yards  and  outbuildings,  it  forms  a 
veritable  town  in  itself.  That  old  hacienda  has  witnessed 
many  scenes  of  war  and  tumult  during  the  nineteenth 
century,  and  who  can  say  how  many  it  had  previously 
survived  ? 

The  four  Amor  brothers  were  educated  in  England, 
and  Victor  Amor,  who  looked  a  typical  specimen  of  an 
English  sportsman,  rode  over  to  the  caves  the  day  pre- 
viously to  meet  and  escort  us  to  his  home.  We  must  have 
numbered  nearly  sixty  as  we  wended  our  way  across  those 
mountains  in  the  earlv  hours  of  mornine- 

An  hour's  ride  from  St.  Gabriel  we  espied  horsemen  on 
the  horizon.      They  consisted  of  Joaquin   Amor — the  elder 

22 


33S  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

brother — and  his  attendants,  such  as  the  doctor  and  heads 
of  the  different  departments  of  sugar,  distillery,  or  rice,  all 
dressed  in  spotless  white.  Sefior  Amor  had  a  black  band 
on  his  arm  in  recognition  of  England's  loss  of  her  Queen. 
They  were  riding  four  abreast  as  they  advanced — fourteen 
in  number — to  bid  us  welcome.  It  was  quite  impressive  ; 
all  those  sombreros  coming  off  at  once,  the  kindly  words  of 
hospitality  spoken  in  truly  Mexican  style,  and  then  the  four- 
teen wheeled  round,  and  we  all  proceeded  together,  ac- 
cording to  the  custom  of  the  country,  towards  the  hacienda. 
Although  many  of  the  courteous  old  customs  have  died  out, 
some  yet  remain,  and  this  act  of  chivalry  was  one  of  them. 
The  host  is  supposed  to  meet  his  guests  at  his  boundary, 
and  there  welcome  them  to  his  possessions. 

What  an  army  we  made  !  All  those  smart,  clean  white 
uniforms  from  San  Gabriel,  our  guard  of  Rurales  in  grey, 
with  silver  buttons  and  braid,  their  red  ties  and  cummer- 
bunds. Pistols,  swords,  guns  on  every  side,  the  large  hats 
and  wondrous  saddles.  About  seventy  mounted  people,  and 
only  two  women  among  them  ! 

As  this  hacienda  of  St,  Gabriel  was  typical  of  a  high- 
class  country  house,  I  must  give  a  few  details  of  its  work- 
ings. 

The  village,  containing  nearly  three  thousand  souls, 
belongs  to  the  hacienda.  The  people  pay  no  rent,  and  the 
owners  of  the  hacienda  hold  the  right  to  turn  them  out. 
The  peasants  are  lent  the  ground  on  which  they  build 
their  own  houses — such  as  they  are — merely  bamboo  walls 
roofed  with  a  palm  leaf  sort  of  thatch.  They  are  all  obliged 
to  work  for  the  hacienda,  in  truly  feudal  style,  whenever 
called  upon  to  do  so.  Each  man  as  a  rule  has  an  allotted 
number  of  days  on  which  he  is  bound  to  render  service. 
Generally  about  one  thousand  people — or  one-third  of  the 
entire  population  of  the  village — are  constantly  employed  ; 
but   the  women    in   Mexico   never  work  away   from  their 


LIFE    ON  A    SOUTHERN  HACIENDA.  339 

homes,  though  in  busy  seasons  children,  and  even  old  men, 
are  pressed  into  service  to  cut  the  sugar-cane. 

There  is  no  church  in  the  village,  that — like  everything 
else — belongs  to  the  hacienda,  and  is  attached  to  the  house. 
These  churches  are  extremely  quaint,  and  have  steeples  and 
domes.  Some  of  such  private  places  of  worship  are  quite 
beautiful  and  contain  rare  treasures  that  have  been  in  the 
family  for  generations.  There  is  a  private  entrance  to  the 
sacred  edifice  from  the  house,  leading  into  a  gallery  used  by 
the  owners.  The  priest  comes  from  the  next  village  to  cele- 
brate Mass  on  Sundays,  holidays  and  "days  of  obligation," 
when  all  the  villao-ers  attend  the  various  masses,  for  the 
church  could  not  hold  3,000  at  once,  although  it  certainly 
accommodates  700  or  800,   there  being  no  seats. 

The  proprietors  of  the  hacienda  pay  the  priest  and  the 
doctor,  but  the  latter  receives  a  little  extra  for  attendance 
■from  outside.  Practically,  however,  the  landowner .  has  to 
look  after  the  spiritual  and  bodily  needs  of  his  people. 
He  is,  in  fact,  a  small  king  with  many  responsibilities,  which 
he  usually  manages  to  fulfil  to  everyone's  satisfaction. 
Each  hacienda  is  obliged  to  keep  its  shop,  and  there  all 
the  purchases  of  the  villagers  are  made,  the  owner  of  the 
hacienda  taking  the  profit  or  risk  of  loss.  Everything  is 
supplied  to  the  workers  from  this  one  shop,  bread,  candles, 
hats,  clothes,  sandals,  matches,  blankets,  lamp-oil,  etc.,  etc. 
As  a  rule  all  the  employes  on  the  hacienda  are  paid 
in  cash  each  Saturday  night,  and  a  little  on  account  every 
Wednesday  ;  no  bills  are  allowed  at  the  store,  which  is 
conducted  on  ready-money  principles.  In  the  olden 
days,  and  unfortunately  still  at  some  haciendas,  the  peons 
are  not  paid  in  money  at  all,  but  have  to  take  out  their 
wages  in  goods  from  the  store,  a  bad  principle,  which  renders 
the  people  little  more  than  slaves.  A  man  and  his  family 
live  on  six  or  eight  cents  a  day  (a  cent  is  about  a 
farthing),  and  men  earn  fifty  cents  per  week  on  an  average 

22* 


340  MEXICO   AS    I   SAW  IT. 

at  a  hacienda  ;  this  is  quite  sufficient  ;  they  sit  rent  free, 
they  have  no  fires  to  pay  for,  little  clothing  is  required,  and 
if  so  minded  they  can  get  pulque  or  aguardiente  for  a  couple 
of  cents.  But,  alas !  it  allows  no  margin  to  save  ;  not 
that  they  would  save  if  they  had  it,  they  would  only  drink 
away  the  extra  money,  for  they  have  not  yet  learnt  thrift. 

If  a  man  become  too  excited  from  stimulants  he  is  put  in 
gaol  until  somewhat  sobered.  If  he  have  fought,  stolen  or 
committed  nmrder,  all  matters  which  sometimes  occur,  the 
owner  of  the  hacienda  has  to  advise  the  authorities.  He 
cannot  keep  a  peon  in  confinement  for  more  than  forty-eight 
hours,  by  the  end  of  which  time  the  culprit  must  be  handed 
over  to  higher  authority.  Prisoners  are  removed  by  the 
ranchero's  own  police — Ventena — of  whom  there  are  several 
on  every  hacienda.  Their  hands  are  just  tied  with  ropes 
behind  their  backs,  and  off  they  are  marched  between 
men  who  look  exactly  like  themselves,  excepting  that  they 
are  heavily  armed. 

It  was  very  picturesque,  that  large  yard,  with  the  mules 
and  carts  and  peons  flitting  about.  Many  women  and  chil- 
dren who  had  come  from  their  homes  to  make  purchases  at 
the  store  added  interest  to  the  scene,  as  they  lingered  about 
before  walking  back  to  the  village  with  their  male  relatives. 

These  haciendas  resemble  monasteries  in  more  ways  than 
one  ;  they  are  far  away  from  the  outside  world,  they  have  to 
do  everything  for  themselves — as  did  the  monks  of  yore — 
so  at  quiet  seasons  they  make  their  own  carts,  even  the 
wheels !  They  employ  regular  carpenters,  blacksmiths, 
coppersmiths,  bricklayers  and  masons  all  the  year  round. 
Everyone  is  paid  by  the  day,  and  the  books  are  most  intri- 
cate. An  hacienda  of  this  kind  is  quite  a  colony,  and 
requires  a  clever  head  to  manage. 

In  the  evening  about  sundown  all  the  hands  come  up 
from  the  fields  and  pass  before  the  book-keeper,  who  sits 
behind  a  large  table  on  the  balcony  at   the  bottom  of  the 


LIFE    ON  A    SOUTHERN  HACIENDA.  341 

house  stairs,  and  as  he  calls  out  the  names  each  man  answers 
in  his  turn.  It  naturally  takes  some  time  to  register  one 
thousand  or  more  names.  I  sat  on  a  weighing-machine  for 
a  long  time  watching  those  hundreds  of  men  and  boys  pass 
the  book-keeper.  They  were  all  respectful  and  nice,  stand- 
ing hat  in  hand  and  bowing  civilly  as  they  passed  the  office 
desk.  At  the  moment  an  extra  seven  hundred  men  and 
boys,  making  a  total  of  1,700  persons,  were  employed 
daily  cutting  sugar  as  it  was  harvest-time.  There  are 
numerous  sugar  haciendas  scattered  over  Mexico  ;  the 
people  are  tremendously  fond  of  sweet  things  and  are 
always  eating  dukes.  The  exports  of  sugar  are  only 
about  ^4,000  annually,  but  of  course  no  sugar  is  imported. 
With  the  new  plant  being  put  up  everywhere,  it  is  likely 
the  export  will  increase  at  a  considerable  rate. 

In  the  house  itself  a  number  of  servants  are  employed  ; 
there  is  always  one,  and  sometimes  there  are  two  servants 
allotted  to  each  member  of  the  family.  Then  again  one 
woman  is  constantly  employed  making  tortillas  for  the 
kitchen  and  the  clerks,  and  she  io  literally  engaged  all  day 
in  grinding  her  Indian  corn  and  patting  out  her  cakes. 

In  the  servants'  bedrooms  there  are  often  altars,  and  the 
sacred  erections  put  up  at  Christmas  are  not  taken  down 
until  the  2nd  of  February.  Each  room  had  its  altar  at 
San  Gabriel,  with  its  little  creche,  moss,  candles,  and  small 
hanging  lamp. 

Hacienda  life  resembles  that  of  England  in  the  time  of 
the  Barons,  when  feudal  laws  reigned  and  hotels  were  un- 
known. For  instance,  in  days  before  the  introduction  of 
ti^ains  into  Mexico,  anyone  could  call  and  ask  for  admittance 
at  an  hacienda,  which  was  then  literally  an  open  house,  as 
to  a  certain  extent  it  remains  to-day.  The  stranger  who 
craved  a  night's  food  and  lodging  sat  at  the  bottom  of  the 
table,  and  perhaps  never  spoke  a  word  ;  he  would  eat,  go  off 
to  bed,  rise,  and  depart  early  next  morning  !      In  the  past 


342  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

he  would  sometimes  even  ask  the  loan  of  a  horse.  At  one 
time  it  was  not  at  all  unusual  for  a  dozen  strangers  to  claim 
lodging  in  one  night,  and  no  one  was  ever  refused.  Hotels 
do  not  exist  even  to-day,  villages  lie  far  apart,  the  roads 
are  merely  mountain  tracks,  so  naturally  shelter  has  still 
sometimes  to  be  asked  for  and  given  at  country  houses. 

A  certain  amount  of  land  in  each  village  is  held  l)y 
Government,  which  the  Indians  have  the  right  to  buy  ;  all 
Government  property  is  claimable,  and  if  anyone  thinks  fit 
and  can  pay  the  price  wanted  he  can  purchase  it.  Besides 
this,  the  owner  of  the  hacienda  generally  lets  out  extra  plots 
of  land  for  farming,  the  men  holding  the  same  being  known 
as  arrendetario,  or  renters.  The  peons  sow  corn  in  the  rainy 
season,  and  pay  their  rent  in  kind  according  to  the  acreage, 
viz.,  five  cargoes  of  corn  for  every  24  cuartillos  they  put  in 
the  ground,  which  covers  about  250  acres.  The  peon  must 
deliver  his  corn  at  the  hacienda  or  railway  ;  15,000  to  20,000 
dollars  is  often  made  yearly  by  the  proprietor  of  the  hacienda 
by  this  means  without  any  worry  or  expense.  He  sells  the 
corn  in  Mexico  City. 

The  term  peon  really  means  a  foot\x\-Si.\-\,  one  without  a 
trade  who  works  for  wages  by  the  day.  Caballe^'o  means 
a  /^c'r^^man,  and  a  gafian  is  a  worker  for  wages  in  agri- 
culture. 

At  the  Amors'  hacienda  I  was  amazed  to  find  a  regular 
racing  stable  ;  their  English  bringing-up  had  made  them 
love  sport.  They  have  built  good  stables,  where  they 
breed  polo  ponies,  trotters,  and  racing  thoroughbreds. 
Everything  is  up-to-date  ;  the  animals'  names  are  painted 
above  their  boxes,  and  the  place  is  well  kept.  The  Amors 
are  devoted  to  their  animals,  and  when  we  went  into  the 
yard  out  popped  various  horses'  heads  over  the  low  doors 
of  their  boxes.  They  knew  their  masters'  voices,  and  came 
up  to  bid  them  welcome  and  receive  a  friendly  rub  on  the 
nose.      It  seemed  strange  to   find  this  love  of  sport  in  the 


LIFE    ON  A    SOUTHERN  HACIENDA.  343 

wild  mountains  of  Southern  Mexico,  another  of  the  endless 
surprises  in  store  for  the  traveller. 

It  is  a  curious  fact  that  in  the  many  haciendas  at  which 
I  was  lucky  enough  to  stay  the  meals  were  invariably  served 
on  a  wide  balcony.  There  were  no  windows,  only  a  carved 
stone  balustrade  and  massive  stone  arches.  On  the  balus- 
trade stood  vases  of  plants  and  palms  in  tubs  everywhere  ; 
all  very  picturesque  and  nice  in  the  middle  of  the  day,  but 
early  breakfast  before  the  sun  had  risen  was  apt  to  strike 
somewhat  chilly,  while  often  by  eight  o'clock — supper  time 
— ^it  grew  quite  cold.  Then  again  it  is  common  to  have  no 
glass  windows,  even  in  the  bedrooms  in  the  south,  just  wire 
netting  to  keep  out  mosquitoes,  and  wooden  shutters  for 
night  use.  Certainly  to  a  European  or  American  mind  the 
houses  of  Mexico  are  chilly  and  strangely  arranged. 

The  living  rooms  are  always  upstairs,  for  the  entire 
ground  floor  of  an  hacienda  is  given  up  to  clerks'  offices, 
store  rooms,  for  the  making  of  sugar,  the  shelling  of  rice  or 
corn,  or  the  packing  of  coffee,  according  to  the  district. 
Sometimes  there  are  two  storeys  of  these  vaults,  which  are 
inhabited  chiefly  by  bats,  who  seem  to  appreciate  the 
darkness.  These  cloister  cellars  were  originally  made  in 
this  manner  because  four  or  five  hundred  years  ago  it  was 
supposed  that  light  affected  sugar  ;  now  it  is  known  it  was 
not  light  but  the  air. 

Nothing  more  weird  or  wildly  romantic  and  picturesque 
could  possibly  be  found  than  some  of  the  old  Spanish 
haciendas  of  Mexico,  and  yet,  in  spite  of  their  antiquity, 
electric  light  and  modern  machinery  are  creeping  in  on 
every  side.  Men  had  been  shot,  fights  had  taken  place, 
elopements  occurred  in  this  dear  historical  old  place  belong- 
ing to  the  Amors,  with  its  flat  roofs  and  queer  chambers. 
The  San  Gabriel  hacienda  was  connected  with  an  important 
event,  too,  in  the  life  of  the  Governor  of  the  State  of 
Morelos,  in  whose  charge  I  was  travelling.      It  was  this  : — 


344  MEXICO   AS    I  SAW  IT. 

In  the  year  1875,  during  the  political  war,  Diaz  got  up  a 
evolution  against  the  President,  Sebastian  Lerdo  de 
Tejada.  Morelos  was  one  of  Diaz'  great  strongholds. 
Alarcon  was  a  captain  then,  fighting  for  the  Government, 
and  therefore  opposed  to  Diaz.  The  insurgents  could  hide 
themselves  in  the  mountains  and  oppose  the  Government 
troops,  but  they  tried  to  avoid  a  regular  fight  with  trained 
forces. 

Alarcon,  then  on  the  side  of  the  Government,  routed 
Diaz'  men  and  took  twenty  prisoners  and  forty  horses. 
When  he  arrived  at  Cacahuimilpa  he  found  that  the  Indians 
had  caught  two  men  whom  they  presented  to  him  with 
pride,  whereupon  he  told  the  prisoners  to  join  the  others  on 
foot.      One  of  them  replied  : 

"  I  presume  you  do  not  know  to  whom  you  are  talking. 
I  am  General  Molina,  one  of  General  Diaz'  most  reliable 
triends  and  generals,  and  have  been  sent  down  by  him  to 
command  his  troops." 

As  soon  as  Alarcon  heard  this  he  drew  up,  wishing  to 
show  all  respect  to  an  enemy  of  such  high  rank,  and  at 
once  lent  him  a  horse,  and  rode  with  him  to  the  hacienda 
of  San  Gabriel — along;  the  road  we  had  traversed  from 
Cacahuimilpa — where  Colonel  Ugalde  was  stationed  with 
his  regiment.  The  hacienda  at  that  time  belonged  to  the 
lather  of  the  present  Amors,  who  were  then  boys  at  school 
in  England.  Alejandro  Oliveros  was  the  manager,  and  his 
son,  Ramon — also  educated  in  England — travelled  through 
Morelos  with  us,  and  kindly  acted  as  my  interpreter  when 
necessity  arose. 

Colonel  Ugalde  was  angry  with  young  Alarcon  for  not 
shooting  General  Molina  on  the  spot,  and  therefore  ordered 
the  captain  to  be  confined  as  a  prisoner.  So  in  this  very 
hacienda  where  he  was  now  an  honoured  guest,  Seiior 
Alarcon  had  once  been  a  captive. 

All     that     night     Senor     Ak^andro     Oliveros     tried     to 


Orran-cactus  hedse. 


Aztec  Indian. 


[  To  face  page  344 


LIFE    ON  A    SOUTHERN  HACIENDA.  345 

persuade   Colonel    Ugalde    not   to   shoot    General    INIolina  ; 
but  all  to  no  avail. 

General  Molina,  a  charmine  nan,  was  told  that  he  would 
be  shot  next  day  ;  he  asked  for  paper,  pen  and  ink,  and 
spent  all  the  night  writing  to  his  wife  ;  towards  morning  he 
went  to  bed,  and  when  called  was  sleeping  quietly.  He 
had  been  fighting  for  weeks,  and  was  travel-stained  and 
dirty,  therefore  after  a  bath  he  borrowed  clean  clothes  from 
Seiior  Oliveros,  and  requested  that  his  boots  might  be 
polished!  He  then  came  across  to  the  dining-room — that 
same  great  balcony  where  we  had  our  meals — calmly  ate 
his  breakfast,  and  when  satisfied  sent  word  to  say  he  was 
ready.  It  had  rained  all  through  the  night,  the  quadrangle 
was  muddy,  and  Ramon  Oliveros  remembers  being  much 
impressed  as  a  boy,  by  seeing  General  Molina  picking  his 
way  across  the  courtyard  in  order  to  keep  his  newly- 
polished  boots  clean  while  he  walked  along  coolly  to  his 
death.  After  passing  the  gate  at  the  far  end,  he  turned 
and  said  : 

"  This  spot  will  do." 

Whereupon  he  made  a  little  speech  to  the  soldiers, 
saying  he  had  been  fighting  for  his  cause,  and  was  cheer- 
fully dying  for  that  cause  ;  he  begged  them  to  be  brave,  to 
uphold  valour  and  honour  before  all,  and  then  calmly  asked 
them  "  to  shoot  at  his  head !  " 

Pluck  is  a  well-developed  characteristic  of  the  Mexicans. 

Alarcon  was  locked  up  at  San  Gabriel  until  all  was  over, 
then  he  was  liberated.  When  that  revolution  was  sup- 
pressed, poor  young  Alarcon  had  a  bad  time.  The  then 
Governor  of  Morelos  sent  for  him  and  appealed  to  him  to 
help  in  subduing  this  obstreperous  State  for  Diaz.  It  was  a 
tough  business  ;  but  Alarcon,  who  had  originally  been 
opposed  to  Diaz,  had  now  realised  the  worth  of  the  man. 
and  determined  to  serve  him  loyally.  He  succeeded  in 
getting  rid  of  most  of  the  brigands.      In  his  many  engage- 


346  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

ments  with  them,  the  Colonel  was  never  wounded,  though 
all  told  me  he  had  performed  some  daring  feats,  and  one  had 
but  to  look  at,  or  talk  to,  the  man  to  believe  the  statement. 
When  Diaz  was  safely  in  power,  he  gave  orders  that 
the  ringleaders  of  rebellion  were  to  be  shot,  as  then  it 
would  be  comparatively  easy  to  subdue  the  others.  He 
rose  to  be  President  of  Mexico  at  a  time  when  nothing  but 
the  most  stringent  measures  were  of  any  avail.  Colonel 
x^larcon  became  one  of  his  most  valued  allies,  and  as  Diaz 
who  ruled  with  a  rod  of  iron  now  leads  the  country  with  a 
wave  of  his  hand,  so  Alarcon  who  shot  down  revolutionists 
relentlessly,  is  now  governor  of  the  self-same  State  through 
which  he  rode  with  me,  while  everywhere  love  and  respect 
o-reeted  him. 

o 

Formerly,  men  were  shot  on  the  slightest  provocation, 
and  troubles  quelled  ;  men  are  still  shot  to-day — not  so 
frequently  of  course,  but  still  they  are  shot  if  they  have 
offended  against  law  and  order.  Trial  is  not  necessary. 
If  a  man  who  is  caught  be  known  as  a  dangerous  character 
or  an  inciter  of  disturbance,  he  is  taken  outside  the  town  by 
a  band  of  soldiers  or  rurales,  and  "allowed  to  escape." 
There  is  a  law  in  Mexico  called  Ley  fuga  which  allows  any 
man  running  away  from  justice  to  be  shot — a  simple 
method  which  saves  much  trouble ! 

Colonel  Alarcon  always  impressed  me  with  his  deter- 
mination and  pluck,  yet  withal  he  was  so  gentle,  so  con- 
siderate and  anxious  that  Seiiorita  Flores  and  I  should 
not  be  over-tired  ;  he  seemed  to  have  both  the  manly, 
soldierly  side  to  his  character,  together  with  the  gentle 
and  womanly  one.  He  appears  to  have  borne  a  charmed 
life  ;  on  one  occasion  his  horse  actually  bolted  with  him 
right  into  a  hundred  or  more  of  his  enemy,  and  he  rode 
untouched  through  their  midst  and  out  again  !  Yet  he  is 
so  modest,  he  never  told  me  one  word  himself  of  his  many 
plucky  deeds,  and  laughed  them    off  as  nothing.      He   is  a 


LIFE    ON  A    SOUTHERN  HACIENDA.  347 

charming  man,  and  no  one  can  wonder  he  and  President 
Diaz  are  such  friends. 

The  worst  of  going  to  nice  places  and  meeting  charming 
people,  is  that  they  have  to  be  left  all  too  soon.  For 
my  part  I  was  quite  sorry  to  turn  my  back  on  San  Gabriel 
with  its  greyhounds  and  fox-terriers,  its  stud  and  farm, 
its  up-to-date  appliances,  and  delightfully  quaint  old  pic- 
turesqueness,  in  order  to  jog  on  again,  partly  by  train 
from  Puente  de  Ixtla — for  we  had  joined  another  line  after 
our  journey  through  the  mountains — and  then  on  horse- 
back to  the  Governor's  own  hacienda  at  Temilpa,  near 
Cuautla,  from  which  the  band  had  come  that  played  in 
those  grand  caves.  There  are  some  marvellous  springs 
here  ;  they  are  not  hot,  only  tepid,  yet  the  pools  are  con- 
tinually bubbling  up  owing  to  volcanic  action.  One  is 
composed  of  mud  and  sand,  and  it  is  strange  to  watch 
the  sand  being  hustled  round  and  round  in  this  regular 
whirlpool.  I  had  never  seen  anything  like  them  except 
in  rugged  Iceland.  They  resembled  water  in  a  saucepan 
boiling  on  the  fire,  but  the  saucepan  was  sixty  yards  in 
circumference,  and  every  now  and  then  the  heated  liquid 
shot  on  high.  These  springs,  of  which  the  water  is  clearest 
green,  are  surrounded  by  all  kinds  of  tropical  vegetation, 
the  pools  themselves  being  closed  in  by  the  most  magnificent 
arum  lilies. 

From  here  we  rode  through  a  banana  grove,  the 
splendid  leaves  forming  delightful  shade  as  we  trotted 
beneath  them  through  the  coffee  with  its  scarlet  berries. 
There  are  so  many  kinds  of  bananas  and  plantains  that 
it  is  quite  impossible  to  describe  them  in  detail,  but  as  a 
rule  they  only  live  eighteen  months,  bear  their  fruit — which 
is  always  picked  green — and  then  die.  Some  of  the 
plantains  in  the  groves  grow  twenty  or  thirty  feet  high  ; 
others  are  much  shorter,  but  it  is  a  handsome  tree,  and 
forms  a  pleasant  shade.       For  the  first  time  in   my  life   I 


34S  MEXICO   AS    I  SAW  IT. 

then  really  enjoyed  a  banana,  and  that  was  because  it 
tasted  like  an  apple  !  It  was  one  of  a  rare  kind  which 
does  not  carry  well,  and  is  therefore  never  exported,  but 
it  was  quite  delicious.  One  can  pick  an  orange,  a  lemL»n 
or  a  lime,  and  eat  it  by  the  way  in  Mexico,  but  a  banana 
is  different.  Much  to  my  surprise,  I  learnt  it  must  be 
cut  and  kept  a  fortnight  even  in  that  tropical  land  before  it 
really  ripens. 

We  lunched  in  an  orange  grove  where  Seiiora  Alarcon — ■ 
the  Governor's  handsome  and  charming  wife — met  us,  anci 
after  the  meal  we  borrowed  the  rifles  of  the  Rurales  and 
shot  at  bottles.  Sefiora  Alarcon  broke  a  couple,  the  writer 
saved  the  credit  of  her  country  on  this  occasion  by  smash- 
ing one,  and  each  of  the  men  managed  to  shatter  several. 

We  were  all  enjoying  ourselves,  everyone  calling  out 
"  Viva  Mexico,"  or  "  Viva  Inglaterra,"  with  reference  to 
the  nationality  of  the  person  whose  good  shot  was  being 
thus  honoured,  when  Sefiora  Alarcon  and  I  moved  away 
for  a  stroll.  On  our  return  I  noticed  the  bottle  was  hanging 
on  another  tree,  and  bent  forward  to  my  hostess  to  say  : — 

"  We  must  move,  we  might  get  a  ricochet  here." 
The  word  ricochet  had  hardly  left  my  lips — ^my  face  being- 
upturned — when  speech  seemed  paralysed  ;  I  was  shot ! 
It  was  nothing  serious,  but  the  little  bit  of  twisted  lead  had 
slid  off  the  bottle  and  buried  itself  in  my  "  Adam's  apple," 
if  the  female  descendants  of  Eve  possess  such  an  organ  ! 
A  tiny  red  streak  ran  down  my  collar,  and  everyone  seemed 
to  think  I  must  be  dead,  so  great  was  the  excitement.  It 
was  nothing,  however,  and  in  a  few  minutes  I  could  speak 
again  and  was  washed  clean  ! 

Frivolity  enters  into  all  our  lives  at  times,  and  a  little 
dancing  under  the  orange  trees  completed  our  amusement 
on  the  day  in  question.  Some  of  the  Rurales  joined  us 
when  we  danced  the  Mexican  national  dance  to  the 
accompaniment  of  some  fiddlers  and  mandoline  players  who 


LIFE    ON  A    SOUTHERN  HACIENDA.  349 

had  come  upon  the  scene,  and  so  under  the  shade  of  orange 
trees  laden  with  blossom  and  fruit,  we  enjoyed  the  delights 
of  the  Terpsichorean  art.  What  a  medley  of  humanity  we 
were,  too  ! 

Colonel  Alarcon's  hacienda  was  famous  chiefly  for  rice 
culture  ;  there  the  brown  husks  were  beinof  removed  to  show 
the  white  beans  within.  This  was  done  by  machinery  ; 
and  yet  at  the  same  farm  the  Indian  corn  was  still  taken 
from  the  cob  by  hand. 

Rice  is,  of  course,  one  of  the  staple  foods  of  Mexico, 
Strangely  enough  it  seldom  or  ever  appears  in  the  form  of 
a  pudding,  but  is  served  as  a  vegetable,  and  in  the  case  of 
the  poorer  people  often  forms  the  entire  meal.  The  chief 
rice-producing  State  is  undoubtedly  Morelos,  where  in  1898 
the  value  of  the  crop  was  685,000  dols. 

We  have  all  heard  of  paddy  fields  in  India  ;  rice  in 
Mexico  is  grown  in  somewhat  the  same  manner.  A 
great  deal  of  water  is  necessary,  which  is  all  dammed  up 
into  little  pools  from  four  to  eight  feet  in  size.  This  is  not 
a  particularly  healthy  form  of  culture,  and  a  mist  or  miasma 
containing  the  germs  of  fever,  is  continually  rising,  but 
then  this  is  only  in  the  rice  fields  themselves,  and  a  hundred 
yards  away  all  may  be  different. 

What  a  happy  week  it  had  been,  what  a  week  of  new 
experiences  and  novel  sights.  How  splendidly  it  had  been 
organised,  nothing  ever  went  wrong  ;  and  yet  it  is  no  easy 
matter  to  move  a  body  of  some  half  hundred  mounted 
people  through  a  mountainous  country,  and  feed  and  house 
them  by  the  way,  when  everything  has  to  be  carried  on 
pack  mules,  and  every  village  has  to  know  when  the  caval- 
cade is  to  be  expected,  so  that  its  officials  may  be  in 
readiness,  its  band  tuned,  its  triumphal  arches  up,  the 
flowers  still  fresh,  its  roadways  lined  with  people,  and 
branches  of  trees  stuck  in  the  ground  to  make  the  paths 
appear  like  boulevards. 


3 so  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

Colonel  Alarcon  had  done  it  all,  and  done  it  right  royally, 
too.  He  was  constantly  making  the  most  charming  allusions 
to  the  pleasure  it  gave  him  to  do  anything  for  a  lady,  for  a 
friend  of  President  Diaz,  for  a  daughter  of  that  great 
country  England,  and — since  he  had  known  me — for  the 
sake  of  the  lady  herself. 

He  has  a  charming  house,  and  both  he  and  his  wife  were 
so  hospitable  and  friendly,  I  soon  felt  at  home. 

Our  visit  to  Temilpa  was  all  too  short.  One  morning 
the  train  stopped,  and  into  it  Victor  Amor,  Adolfo 
Grimwood,  and  I  stepped  on  our  way  back  to  Mexico  City. 
Some  of  the  party  remained  with  the  Alarcons,  others 
started  to  ride  home  again  through  the  mountains.  The 
Governor  rode  with  us  to  the  station,  accompanied  by  his 
guard,  and  then  galloped  off  to  meet  General  Diaz,  who  was 
arriving  further  up  the  line  in  his  special  train.  He  had 
been  ill,  very  ill,  but  not  nearly  so  ill  as  the  European  and 
American  papers  had  reported,  and  for  nearly  six  weeks  he 
remained  the  guest  of  Colonel  Alarcon  until  his  health  was 
completely  restored. 

The  Governor  of  Morelos  was  terribly  distressed  that  he 
could  not  escort  me  to  his  frontier,  but  to  meet  the  President 
of  Mexico  was  of  course  his  first  duty. 

At  the  frontier  CuazUla,  the  Jefe  Politico  Agustin 
Munoz  de  Cote  met  us,  and  gave  the  luncheon  Colonel 
Alarcon  had  ordered  to  be  in  readiness  when  the  train 
stopped. 

Only  imagine  a  church  and  adjacent  convent  being  turned 
into  a  railway  station  !  Yet  this  has  actually  happened  at 
Cuautla,  situated  on  the  border  of  the  State  of  Morelos. 
In  Iceland  the  church  at  Thingvalla  was  formerly  used  as  a 
sleeping  place  for  weary  travellers,  although  during  my 
visit  to  that  interesting  spot  we  were  lodged  in  the  priest's 
house.  Churches  have  been  put  to  strange  uses,  as  stables 
or  barracks  in  times  of  war  ;  but  in  days  of  peace  it  seems 


LIFE    ON  A    SOUTHERN  HACIENDA.  351 

odd  to  select  a  place  of  worship  as  a  suitable  building 
for  a  railway  station.  A  pretty  church,  too,  for  Mexico 
is  justly  famous  for  the  number  and  beauty  of  her  religious 
edifices. 

The  tower  with  its  bells  remains  ;  in  fact  the  Church 
remains,  but  it  has  been  adapted  to  ticket  offices  and  other 
uses.  Cuautla  is  a  sweet  place  ;  in  the  garden  where  we 
lunched  with  the  distinguished-looking  sheriff  was  a  pro- 
fusion of  flowers.  We  were  not  a  hundred  miles  south  of 
the  city  of  Mexico,  yet  the  climate  was  tropical. 

It  was  wonderful — from  first  to  last  those  eight  days' 
ride  through  the  State  of  Morelos  appear  more  like  a 
dream  than  reality. 

A  delightful  little  pamphlet  written  in  Spanish  has  been 
printed,  giving  an  account  of  that  trip  through  Morelos. 
It  is  too  long  to  give  in  full,  but  one  or  two  short  extracts 
are  appended.  It  only  came  into  my  hands  long  after  this 
chapter  was  written,  and  yet  shows  the  Spanish  man  and 
English  woman  received  much  the  same  impressions  : — 

VISIT    TO    THE   STATE   OF    MORELOS, 

BY 
THE    DISTINGUISHED    WRITER,    MRS.    ALEC    TWEEDIE. 

The  progress  of  our  country  is  assuredly  only  furthered  by  the  visits  of  distinguished 
writers,  who  on  returning  to  their  own  countries  will  forward  the  current  of  emigration 
to  Mexico  by  the  accounts  of  their  impressions  as  they  lay  them  before  their  readers. 
There  is  therefore  nothing  strange  in  the  fact  that  our  Government  should  receive  with 
open  arms  authors  of  real  eminence  who  come  here  perchance  bearing  a  bagful  of  pre- 
judices against  us,  and  who  on  leaving  must  take  away  the  fondest  recollections  of  our 
country,  and  intend,  let  us  hope,  to  contradict  some  of  those  false  impressions  from 
which  we  have  suffered  so  much  in  the  past. 

Our  State  has  been  honoured  by  a  visit  from  the  distinguished  writer,  Mrs.  Alec 
Tweedie,  that  indefatigable  authoress,  who  adds  to  her  exceptional  energy  real  literary 
talent  and  a  vast  amount  of  solid  common  sense.  She  came  preceded  by  well-deserved 
fame,  which  has  certainly  been  fully  justified,  and  bore  with  her  the  highest  recom- 
mendations from  the  President  of  the  Republic  and  other  distinguished  folk  residing  in 
Mexico.  She  was  accompanied  by  Senor  Alarcon,  whose  gallantry  and  savoir  faire  are 
proverbial,  and  we  believe  that  he  will  cherish  a  most  delightful  recollection  of  his 
journey.  We  purpose  to  relate  as  summarily  as  possible  the  excursion  of  the  Senora 
Tweedie,  in  which  we  had  the  pleasure  of  taking  part. 


352  MEXICO   AS    I  SAW   IT. 

At  the  little  village  of  San  Antonio,  Senora  Tweedieand  the  Governor,  Senor  Alarcon, 
were  received  with  simplicity,  but  with  many  significant  proofs  of  affection.  In  the 
middle  of  the  only  and  picturesque  street  of  the  town  the  inhabitants  had  built  floral 
arches  with  kindly  inscriptions.  They  presented  the  Senora  with  bouquets  of  flowers 
and  pieces  of  pottery  to  remind  her  of  her  visit  to  their  pueblo. 

On  passing  through  the  village  of  Xochitepec  a  liand  of  the  pupils  of  the  schools  was 
waiting  to  salute  the  Senora. 

A  most  agreeable  surprise  awaited  us  at  the  village  of  Alpuyeca,  where  we  arrived 
about  eleven  o'clock.  The  principal  street  of  the  village  had  been  beautifully  decorated 
with  floral  arches,  hanging  festoons  and  flags,  and  a  special  arch  erected  in  front  of  the 
municipal  Ijuildings  bore  a  kindly  inscription  in  English,  namely,  "  Welcome  to  the 
Illustrious  Visitor." 

The  Mansion  itself  was  beautifully  decorated  with  quantities  of  beautiful  palms, 
flowers  and  flags.  In  the  middle  of  the  street  were  placed  the  pupils  of  the  schools 
carrying  banners,  and  the  inhabitants  of  the  town  had  come  out  to  salute  Mrs.  Alec 
Tweedie.  The  village  band  was  playing  the  whole  time.  Beside  the  large  arch  which 
we  have  described  a  platform  had  been  erected,  on  which  stood  an  allegorical  group, 
representing  the  independence  of  Mexico,  and  formed  by  three  little  girls.  The  Senora 
Tweedie  showed  her  profound  gratitude  to  the  people  for  their  cordial  manifestations. 

Without  any  mishap  we  reached  Xochicalco,  where  we  were  received  by  the  principal 
chief  of  the  district,  accompanied  by  the  Mayors  of  the  villages  of  Tetlama  and 
Xochitepec.  In  front  of  the  ruins  a  beautiful  floral  bower  had  been  erected,  over  which 
were  placed  the  united  flags  of  Mexico  and  England,  and  an  inscription  in  English  : — 
"  To  Mrs.  Alec  Fweedie.     Wellcome.     January  22nd,  1901." 

After  the  party  had  partaken  of  an  excellent  luncheon,  one  of  the  Indians  from 
Tetlama  asked  leave  of  the  Senora  to  address  a  few  words  to  her  in  Aztec  idiom, 
which  she  readily  granted. 

The  following  day  (25th)  we  went  by  train  to  Temilpa,  and  got  out  of  the  train  quite 
close  to  a  famous  ruin,  where  twelve  horses  for  the  party  were  awaiting  us.  From  here 
we  rode  through  two  banana  groves  to  the  springs  which  give  birth  to  the  Green  River 
(Rio  Verde).  The  sight  was  really  most  picturesque  which  was  aft'orded  to  us  by  all 
those  extraordinary  bubbling  springs,  which  are  situated  in  most  luxuriant  surroundings. 
The  exuberant  vegetation,  the  truly  tropical  splendour,  evoked  admiration  from  one  and 
all,  as  the  Borbollones  poured  forth  the  enormous  quantity  of  twelve  cubic  metres  of 
water  per  second.  The  whole  volume  of  water  presents  an  appearance  of  a  volcano  in  a 
state  of  eruption,  and  the  water  is  thrown  to  a  height  of  ten  feet. 

After  admiring  the  tropical  beauty  of  these  wonderful  springs  we  rode  on  to  an  orange 
grove,  where  we  were  met  by  Senora  de  Alarcon,  who  had  come  from  the  Governor's 
hacienda  at  Temilpa,  a  few  miles  distant,  bringing  with  her  a  most  magnificent 
luncheon.  After  luncheon  the  diff"erent  members  of  the  party  amused  themselves  in 
various  ways,  and  finally  Mrs.  Tweedie  and  Madame  Alarcon,  I^orrowing  the  soldiers' 
firearms,  proceeded  to  shoot  at  bottles  which  were  suspended  from  the  branches  of  the 
trees.  Senora  Alarcon  is  an  excellent  shot,  and  both  she  and  our  English  guest 
succeeded  in  hitting  the  target  and  breaking  their  bottles. 

At  five  in  the  afternoon  we  went  to  the  Governor's  residence,  and  remained  there  for 
a  couple  of  days  ;  it  is  situated  about  four  miles  from  the  orange  grove. 

Here,  unfortunately,  our  delightful  trip  came  to  an  end,  but  not  before  the  Governor 
had  made  Mrs.  Tweedie  a  very  charming  little  speech.     Me  said  : — 


LIFE   ON  A    SOUTHERN  HACIENDA.  353 

"It  is  with  infinite  regret,  Madame,  that  we  have  come  to  the  termination  of  your 
little  excursion  through  my  State.  We  one  and  all  retain  the  most  vivid  and  agreeable 
impressions  of  the  charm  and  amiability  of  our  guest.  Whether  riding  or  driving, 
comfortable  or  uncomfortable,  she  has  invariably  been  cheerful  under  all  circumstances. 
Her  energy  is  indefatigable,  and  her  talent  and  versatility  surprising."  He  concluded 
his  flattering  remarks  by  saying  : — 

"  You  brought  with  you,  Madame,  a  recommendation  that  to  me  is  of  the  highest 
value,  that  of  the  President  of  the  Republic,  but  believe  me,  Senora,  that  without  any 
such  recommendation  you  yourself,  by  your  own  merit,  would  gain  the  good  care  of  all 
here,  and  be  granted  every  privilege  that  you  could  wish  for.  The  Senora  Tweedie  has 
left  to  all  of  us  who  know  her  the  most  pleasant  and  indelible  recollections.  May  God 
guide  her  through  all  paths,  and  may  He  grant  that  her  impressions  of  Mexico  may  be 
as  favourable  as  are  those  which  she  has  created  in  our  minds." 

We  conclude  by  addressing  to  Colonel  Alarcon  our  utmost  thanks  for  having  afforded 
us  the  pleasure  of  such  an  agreeable  excursion.  The  arrangement  and  management  of 
everything  were  beyond  praise  ;  we  had  not  one  single  difficulty  during  the  whole 
journey.  Everywhere  we  went  we  found  arrangements  had  been  made  for  our  reception, 
and  for  everybody's  comfort.  Had  it  not  been  for  such  splendid  management,  the  trip 
would  have  been  extremely  difficult,  in  fact,  in  some  cases,  almost  impossible  ;  and  this 
excursion  gives  one  additional  proof — if  it  were  needed — of  the  powers  of  organisation 
possessed  by  the  Governor  of  Morelos,  and  of  the  great  affection  in  which  he  is  held  by 
his  subordinates,  all  of  whom  most  zealously  carried  out  his  most  minute  instructions. 


23 


354 


CHAPTER   XXII. 

AN    INTERESTING    TRIP    TO    OAXx\CA. 

Everyone  who  goes  to  Mexico  should  visit  the  wonderful 
Mayas-Zapotec  ruins  of  Mitla.  Mexico  possesses  the 
strangest,  most  romantic,  most  cruel  of  records. 
Mayas,  Toltec,  Aztec  and  Zapotec  ruins  still  remain  after 
one  or  four  thousand  years,  perhaps  more,  who  knows  ? 
and  are  dotted  over  the  country  to  cause  doubt  and 
speculation,  and  mystify  historian  and  archaeologist  alike. 

The  ruins  of  Mitla  are  probably  Zapotec,  but  no  one  has 
yet  been  able  to  decide  the  question  ;  in  any  case,  they  are 
totally  unlike  the  fortress  of  Xochicalco,  which  is  supposed 
to  be  of  Aztec  origin. 

A  narrow  gauge  railway  runs  to  Oaxaca,  a  day  and 
night's  journey  from  the  City,  and  a  few  hours  before 
reaching  the  town  with  this  strange  name — one  realises 
the  marvellous  engineering  skill  that  managed  to  get  even 
a  narrow  gauge  line  up  that  tremendous  grade,  where 
there  is  not  a  single  kilometre  without  its  curves,  and 
where  for  sixty  miles,  while  passing  through  the  Canon  de 
Tomellin,  one  sits  amazed  at  the  mao-nificence  of  the  sur- 
roundings.  The  Cafion  de  Guerrero,  on  the  road  to  Tam- 
])ico,  is  beautiful  with  its  verdure,  great  tropical  trees, 
cocoanuts  and  bamboos,  creepers  and  palms,  its  parrots  and 
its  monkeys;  but  de  Tomellin  is  quite  different,  wildly  grand, 
with  hills  and  precipices  of  volcanic  rock.  There  is  prac- 
tically no  vegetation  in  places,  but  the  red,  yellow,  brown 


*M. 


Cholula  Pyramid. 


Big  tree  of  Tule,  1 54  feet  round  the  trunk  at  6  feet  from  the  ground  ;  a  native  says, 
"It  takes  two  looks  to  see  the  top." 


[To face  page  3S4. 


AN  LXTERESTIXG    TRIP    TO    OAXACA.         355 

grey  or  white  of  those  volcanic  masses  is  so  twisted  and 
twirled  that  they  look  as  though  they  had  been  swirled 
round  and  round  in  a  boiling  cauldron,  and  the  sight  of  them 
makes  the  trip  magnificent.  Perhaps  this  may  be  con- 
sidered ihe g7^andest  line  in  Mexico,  for  it  is  just  one  splendid 
wild  picture  after  another. 

Mr.  W.  Morcom,  of  the  Mexican  Southern  Railway, 
kindly  sent  his  private  car  up  to  Mexico  City  to  fetch  me, 
and  Mrs.  C.  R.  Hudson  was  my  companion. 

We  enjoyed  Puebla,  with  its  lovely  Cathedral,  its  won- 
derful chapel  of  Santo  Domingo,  where  the  carving  is 
undoubtedly  another  of  the  best  specimens  in  Mexico — and 
when  one  says  "  Mexico "  one  means  in  the  world,  for  in 
the  matter  of  churches,  carvings,  and  gildings,  Mexico 
contains  exquisite  workmanship.  Much  was  destroyed  in 
the  days  of  warfare  and  revolution,  but  fortunately  much 
still  remains.  The  Domingo  churches  are  generally  the 
finest  of  all,  which  is  again  proved  in  Oaxaca  ;  that  sect  of 
monks  seems  to  have  been  particularly  artistic  as  well  as  rich. 

In  Puebla  a  handsome  Municipal  Palace  has  just  been 
erected,  and  the  architect  is  an  Englishman,  Mr.  Charles 
Hall,  a  former  student  of  the  Royal  Academy,  London. 
How  Britons  do  penetrate  to  the  farthest  corners  of  the  earth ! 

In  small  towns  like  Puebla,  Oaxaca  or  Cuernavaca,  it  is 
not  the  fashion  for  ladies  to  wear  hats.  The  girls  have  no 
head  covering,  and  when  they  go  out  in  the  sun — which  is 
seldom — they  merely  use  a  parasol.  To  avoid  sunburn 
they  powder  tremendously — quite  a  white  powder,  which 
contrasts  strangely  with  their  dark  skins.  The  elder  ladies 
wear  lace  mantillas,  or  thin  black  scarves,  over  their  hair. 
These,  though  charming — especially  the  former — afford  no 
protection  whatever  from  the  sun  !  It  seems  strange  that 
the  men — includinof  gentlemen — should  all  wear  the  enormous 
hat  of  the  countrv,  while  the  women  q^o  unshielded. 

The    poorer    women   never    wear  a  hat  ;    they  just    put 

23* 


356  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

their  blue  shawls  (rebozo)  over  their  heads,  and  walk  about 
at  the  hottest  time  of  the  day  with  no  further  protection 
from  the  sun.      Needless  to  say,  they  have  no  parasols  ! 

The  people  seem  to  be  divided  into  two  classes,  those  who 
dread  the  sun  and  those  who  do  not.  Those  who  do,  drive 
about  in  closed  carriages,  while  their  coachmen  carry  sun- 
shades !  Sunstroke  in  Mexico  is  almost  unknown,  except 
among  foreigners. 

Puebla  is  one  of  the  twenty-seven  States  of  Mexico,  and 
its  chief  town  has  the  same  name.  Eleven  times  have 
armies  assembled  before  the  eates  of  Puebla,  Eleven 
times  in  the  strange  history  of  Mexico  has  Puebla  played 
her  part ;  but  now  all  is  quiet.  There  are  two  or  three 
dozen  factories,  saw-mills,  and  foundries.  The  public 
squares  are  full  of  monuments,  and  the  streets  clean  and 
well-kept.  The  town  stands  7,000  feet  above  the  sea  level, 
after  the  usual  Mexican  fashion.  Mexico  had  no  considera- 
tion for  weak  hearts  when  it  planned  its  cities  ! 

Of  course  we  went  to  see  the  famous  Aztec  pyramid  of 
Cholula,  where  the  Spaniards  met  the  former  in  deadly 
combat.  A  drive  of  seven  or  eight  miles  in  a  tram-car 
drawn  by  galloping  mules  brought  us  to  the  spot.  Men 
were  ploughing  with  funny  old  wooden  implements  drawn 
by  oxen,  and  churches  were  to  be  seen  on  every  side. 

The  pyramid  of  Cholula  is  thus  described  by  Prescott  in 
his  "  Conquest  of  Mexico  "  : — 

"  Cholula  was  to  Mexico  what  Mecca  is  to  Mahommedans,  or  Jerusalem  to  Christians. 
It  was  the  Holy  City  of  Anahuac. 

"  It  was  in  honour  of  Quetzalcoatl,  the  benevolent  deity,  that  the  stupendous  mound 
was  erected  on  which  the  traveller  still  gazes  with  admiration  as  the  most  colossal  fabric 
in  New  Spain,  rivalling  in  dimensions,  and  somewhat  resembling  in  form,  the  pyramidal 
structures  of  ancient  Egypt.  The  date  of  its  erection  is  unknown.  It  seems  not  im- 
probable that  it  is  an  artificial  composition  of  stone  and  earth,  deeply  incrusted,  as  is 
certain,  in  every  part,  with  alternate  strata  of  brick  and  clay. 

"The  perpendicular  height  of  the  pyramid  is  one  hundred  and  seventy-seven  feet.  Its 
base  is  one  thousand  four  hundred  and  twenty-three  feel  long,  twice  as  long  as  that 
of  the  great  pyramid  of  Cheops.  It  may  give  some  idea  of  its  dimensions  to  state  that 
its  base,  which  is  square,  covers  about  forty-four  acres,  and  the  platform  on  its  truncated 


^.V  INTERESTING    TRIP    TO    O  AX  AC  A.  357 

summit  embraces  more  than  one.  It  reminds  us  of  those  colossal  monuments  of  brick- 
work which  are  still  seen  in  ruins  on  the  banks  of  the  Euphrates,  and,  in  much  higher 
preservation,  on  those  of  the  Nile.  Several  of  the  pyramids  of  Eg)'pt,  and  the  ruins 
of  Babylon,  are,  as  is  well  known,  of  brick.  An  inscription  on  one  of  the  former, 
indeed,  celebrates  this  material  as  superior  to  stone.  Humboldt  furnishes  an  apt  illus- 
tration of  the  size  of  the  Mexican  teocalli  by  comparing  it  to  a  mass  of  bricks  covering 
a  square  four  times  as  large  as  the  Place  Vendome,  and  of  twice  the  height  of  the  Louvre. 

"On  the  summit  stood  a  sumptuous  temple,  in  which  was  the  image  of  the  mystic 
deity,  '  god  of  the  air,'  with  ebon  features,  unlike  the  fair  complexion  which  he  bore 
upon  earth,  wearing  a  mitre  on  his  head  waving  with  plumes  of  fire,  with  a  resplendent 
collar  of  gold  round  his  neck,  pendants  of  mosaic  turquoise  in  his  ears,  a  jewelled 
sceptre  in  one  hand,  and  a  shield  curiously  painted,  the  emblem  of  his  rule  over  the 
winds,  in  the  other.  The  sanctity  of  the  place,  hallowed  by  hoary  tradition,  and  the 
magnificence  of  the  temple  and  its  services,  made  it  an  object  of  veneration  throughout 
the  land,  and  pilgrims  from  the  furthest  corners  of  Anahuac  came  to  offer  up  their 
devotions  at  the  shrine  of  Quetzacoatl.  The  number  of  these  was  so  great  as  to  give 
an  air  of  mendicity  to  the  motley  population  of  the  city  ;  and  Cortes,  struck  with  the 
novelty,  tells  us  that  he  saw  multitudes  of  beggars,  such  as  are  to  be  found  in  the 
enlightened  capitals  of  Europe  ;  a  whimsical  criterion  of  civilisation  which  must  place 
our  own  prosperous  land  somewhat  low  in  the  scale. 

"  Cholula  was  not  the  resort  only  of  the  indigent  devotee." 

Cholula  is  still  a  place  of  pilgrimage. 

It  hardly  looks  like  a  pyramid,  so  thick  is  the  vegetation, 
so  tall  are  the  trees  ;  on  one  side  is  a  wide  stairway,  or  now 
and  then  a  gentle  slant,  up  which  the  pilgrims  toil,  often  on 
their  knees  !  We  felt  quite  like  pilgrims  ourselves,  so  hot 
was  the  sun  and  so  Q-reat  the  ascent.  At  the  summit  was  a 
church,  not  a  particularly  beautiful  place  of  worship  by  any 
means,  but  commanding  such  a  panorama!  It  is  said  that 
fifty-seven  churches  can  be  seen  in  the  surrounding  valleys, 
and  indeed  domes  and  spires  seemed  more  numerous  than 
ever.  They  are  such  beautiful  tiled  or  gilded  domes  and 
such  splendid  towers,  that  really  the  churches  of  Mexico, 
even  in  the  villages,  excite  astonishment. 

Puebla  was  once  famous  for  its  tiles,  and  most  of  the  best 
in  Mexico  were  formerly  made  there,  usually  copied  from 
the  old  Moorish  ;  but  the  art  has  died  out,  and  although 
there  is  one  man  who  undertakes  to  copy  them,  he  fails  to 
get  that  wonderful  mellowness  of  colouring  that  one  finds  in 
the  old  glaze. 

We  had  a  terrible  dust  storm   at   Cholula,   one  of  those 


358  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

storms  which  turn  one's  hair  white,  and  fill  eyes,  ears, 
nose  and  mouth  with  sand.  It  o-ave  me  a  sore  throat, 
and  being  afraid  to  start  for  southern  wilds  with  tonsilitis, 
or  anything  of  the  sort,  I  went  to  a  druggist  to  obtain  a 
remedy.  He  spoke  no  language  but  Spanish.  A  few 
words  and  many  gesticulations  made  him,  however,  under- 
stand I  wanted  a  throat  spray,  and  at  last  he  produced  one 
triumphantly.  So  far  so  good.  Now  I  required  iron  or 
steel  drops  to  use  in  it.  Alas !  English,  French,  and 
German  failed  ;  what  was  to  be  done  ?  Suddenly  like  an 
inspiration  the  Latin  word  "  ferrum  "  came  into  my  mind. 

"  Ferrum  ? "  I  said  in  an  interrogatory  tone. 

"Si,  Sefiora,  ferrum,"  replied  the  gentleman,  and  off  he 
went  and  fetched  the  bottle. 

It  is  wonderful  what  can  be  accomplished  in  a  foreign 
land  by  signs  and  an  occasional  odd  word.  But  one  must 
not  be  shy ! 

After  we  left  Puebla  the  journey  by  train  became  ex- 
tremely interesting,  and  as  we  travelled  farther  south  the 
vegetation  grew  more  and  more  tropical.  This  was  the 
third  time  I  had  entered  tropical  climes  within  a  month,  and 
to  return  again  to  the  height  of  Mexico  City  seemed  some- 
what of  a  trial  for  any  constitution  ! 

It  is  a  strange  country  ;  in  the  valley  of  this  route  rain 
never  falls.  From  January  to  December  rain  is  unknown  ; 
but  there  is  mist  or  rain  in  the  hills,  whereby  the  land  is 
irrigated.  The  result  is  that  whenever  people  feel  inclined, 
they  sow  a  crop,  and  are  able  to  reap  it  a  few  weeks  later, 
regardless  of  the  season,  and  when  they  wish  to  sow  another 
they  just  do  so.  Three  crops  a  year  are  quite  a  common 
occurrence,  so  bountiful  is  Nature  in  this  part  of  the 
world  ! 

Surprises  never  end  in  Mexico.  About  luncheon-time 
our  train  drew  up  at  the  station  of  Tomellin,  and  I  was  just 
stepping  out  of  the   car   when  a  gentleman  came   forward 


AN  INTERESTING   TRIP    TO   OAXACA.         359 

and  asked  if  I  were  "  Senora  Seed?"  I  bowed  assent, 
having  learnt  that  there  was  no  w  in  Spanish,  for  which 
reason  Tweedie  proved  totally  unpronounceable  to  an 
ordinary  Mexican. 

He  promptly  began  a  long  speech,  in  which  I  caught  the 
words  y^/^  Politico,  Gobernador,  Comida  (Sheriff,  Governor, 
Luncheon).  In  my  best  Spanish  I  thanked  him,  not  daring 
to  say  we  had  just  lunched  in  the  private  car,  on  the  good 
fare  provided  by  Mr.  Morcom,  and  taking  his  arm,  was 
marched  off  amid  many  kindly  words  of  welcome  to  a 
second  meal.  He  was  the  Jefe  Politico  of  the  district  of 
Cuicatlan  Torres  Altaminano.  Almost  immediately  another 
man  came  along  the  platform  and  enquired  in  English  if  I 
were  Mrs.  Alec  Tweedie. 

"  I  have  come  with  the  Chief  Justice  of  the  State  on 
behalf  of  the  Governor,  General  Gonzales,  who  is  away,  to 
bid  you  welcome,"  said  the  new-comer. 

It  turned  out  that  President  Diaz,  with  his  customary 
forethought,  had  telegraphed  the  news  of  my  probable 
arrival,  and  this  young  Englishman — whose  father,  Con- 
stantine  Rickards,  had  lived  in  Mexico  for  fifty  years — had 
been  sent  with  the  Chief  Justice,  Sefior  Lie  Magro,  a 
journey  of  five  hours  by  rail — imagine !  five  hours  by  rail 
in  the  tropics ! — to  meet  and  escort  me  to  the  capital  of  the 
State  !      They  brought  the  following  letter  : — 

Correspondencia  Particular  Oaxaca,   Enero  29  de  1901. 

del 
GOBERNADOR    DEL    ESTADO. 


Senora  ELEN  TWEEDIE,  Tomellin. 
Muy  respetable  Sra. : 

El  suscrito  Gobernador  del  Estado  pot  la  presente  tiene  la 
honra  de  presentar  a  Ud.  a  los  Srs.  Licenciado  Francisco  Magro  y 
Federico  Rickards  comisionados  para  que  en  su  representacion  se 
sirvan  ofrecerle  sus  respetos  y  acompanarla  hasta  su  alojamiento  en  esta 
Ciudad. 

El  mismo  queda  de  Ud.  afmo.  y  S.S. 

NICOLAS    LOPEZ, 

Garrido. 


36o  MEXICO  AS   1  SAW  IT 

We  all  went  off  to  the  luncheon  prepared,  and  Mrs. 
Hudson  and  I  enjoyed  iced  lemon  squashes,  and  played 
with  food  to  keep  the  others  company. 

Here  in  the  canon,  miles  from  anywhere  and  everywhere 
—so  to  speak — was  a  luncheon  fit  for  a  king.  The  little 
shanty  was  kept  by  a  Chinaman,  a  first-class  caterer  and 
cook  ;  as  said  before,  surprises  never  end  in  Mexico. 
The  mere  fact  that  it  should  pay  this  enterprising  caterer 
seemed  extraordinary  ;  but  of  course  he  had  all  the 
passengers  from  the  daily  up  and  down  trains,  and  being 
on  the  line  could  easily  get  supplies  of  food  when 
necessary  ;  but  the  result  was  so  wonderful,  it  would 
have  done  credit  to  many  a  large  railway  station,  where 
the  fare  is  often  equally  surprising  in  its  awfulness  ! 

What  a  journey  it  was  up  the  caiion  from  Tomellin  to 
Oaxaca !  What  glorious  rocks,  what  deep  ravines  and 
mountain  torrents,  everything  wild  and  grand  !  Our  little 
engine  puffed  and  panted  as  we  rose  higher  and  higher. 
For  sixty  miles  we  swung  round  corners  more  or  less  on 
four  per  cent,  grades,  so  the  effect  may  be  imagined  !  Just 
one  grand  picture  after  another,  but  it  was  terribly  hot. 

The  train  was  stopped  on  two  occasions  for  me  to  take 
photographs ;  out  I  jumped  with  the  conductor,  while 
heads  were  popped  from  every  window  to  see  what  had 
happened.  Alas,  the  photographs  were  a  failure — some  of 
the  few  failures  of  Mexico.  The  tropical  damp  of  the  caiion 
made  the  films  hazy  and  indistinct,  as  happened  later  at 
Tehuantepec.  The  ravine  is  so  shut  in,  in  places,  it  was 
exactly  like  a  Turkish  bath. 

The  two  officials  from  the  Governor  returned  with  us 
on  the  five  hours'  journey  to  Oaxaca,  which  they  had  left 
at  five  o'clock  that  morning.  They  proved  delightful 
companions,  although  the  Chief  Justice  only  spoke  Spanish. 

The  pass  became  grander  and  grander  ;  the  mountains 
rose  five  thousand   feet  straight  up  from  the  railway  track. 


AN  INTERESTING    TRIP    TO    OAXACA.  361 

One  strange  thing  we  noticed  ;  after  following  a  stream 
the  waters  of  which  were  flowing  to  the  south,  suddenly 
the  train  passed  through  a  cutting,  and  the  river  was 
flowing  to  the  north ! 

When  our  train  drew  up  at  Oaxaca,  it  was  nearly  dark 
{j.y^  p.m.),  but  there,  standing  on  the  platform  were  a 
number  of  "  new  friends  "  to  welcome  us.  The  Governor 
of  the  State,  and  some  of  his  officials,  and  also  the  oldest 
English  resident  in  Oaxaca,  namely,  Constantine  Rickards, 
senior,  the  father  of  one  of  our  escort. 

In  front  of  us  was  a  line  of  soldiers,  and  behind  them 
stood  a  couple  of  artillery  waggons.  I  ventured  to 
remark  upon  this  latter  fact,  and  received  the  amazing 
reply  : 

"  They  are  here  for  your  luggage." 

This  was  sad,  for  we  had  no  luggage,  at  least  none 
to  speak  of ;  but  they  managed  to  spread  the  little  out 
somehow,  and  half  an  hour  later  six  soldiers  in  uniform 
solemnly  marched  into  the  hotel,  bearing  two  small  cases, 
and  two  sombrero  hats!  They  deposited  our  "-luggage " 
with  great  ceremony,  and  after  saluting,  departed. 

Carriages  were  waiting  at  the  station,  and  arm  in  arm 
with  the  Governor  of  the  State,  I  marched  across  the  plat- 
form, and  took  my  seat  behind  the  driver.  It  is  really 
interesting  to  witness  the  amount  of  fatigue  a  Mexican 
gentleman  will  go  through  when  placing  a  lady  in  the  seat 
of  honour.  It  is  a  matter  of  courtesy  about  which  he  is 
most  particular. 

When  our  carriage  drew  up  at  the  hotel,  we  found 
another  battalion  of  soldiers  before  the  door.  "As  we 
halted,  they  struck  up  the  national  air  of  Mexico.  This 
Oaxaca  band  was  certainly  the  best  I  heard  in  the 
Republic  ;  it  played  splendidly.  Thirty-eight  performers 
serenaded  us  that  evening  until  I  stepped  on  to  the 
balcony   of    the   caged-in    window     and    called     the     band- 


362  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

master  to  thank  him  for  his  excellent  music,  and  to 
tell  him  we  were  ready  to  go  to  bed.  Otherwise,  I  verily 
believe  these  serenades  would  go  on  all  night,  for  the 
people  love  music  dearly.  Hundreds  of  Indians  were  lolling 
in  the  street,  or  lying  on  the  pavement,  enjoying  this  open- 
air  concert. 

A  suite  of  rooms,  including  a  dining  and  drawing  room, 
had  been  secured,  and  in  them  we  found  exquisite  bouquets 
of  roses,  each  bearing  a  card  of  welcome  from  the 
Governor  of  the  State  of  Oaxaca,  or  some  English 
or  American  resident.  It  all  seemed  quite  home-like,  and 
everyone  was  so  kind  that  for  a  moment  I  almost  forgot 
that  mighty  oceans  divided  me  from  my  dear  old  London 
surroundings. 

The  Governor  had  ordered  supper,  which,  alas  !  we  could 
not  enjoy,  as  we  and  our  escorts  had  dined  in  the  private 
car  ;  but  on  going  into  the  dining-room  to  get  some  soda 
water,  I  was  amazed  to  find  two  large  baskets  of  cham- 
pagne and  all  sorts  of  good  vintages  had  been  sent  up 
from  the  Municipal  Palace  for  our  use  !  They  certainly  do 
things  royally  in  Mexico,  but  almost  teetotal  habits  did  not 
cause  much  shrinkage  in  the  basket-cellar. 

The  son  of  an  Englishman  is  Archbishop  of  Oaxaca  ! 
Strange  but  true  ;  and  Archbishop  Gillow  is  a  most  delight- 
ful person.  Oaxaca  is  really  to  be  congratulated  on  having 
such  a  high  priest,  for  he  is  a  gentleman  and  a  scholar,  a 
student  of  art,  and  just  the  man  to  restore  the  Cathedral 
and  the  Santo  Domingo  church,  both  of  which  he  seems  to 
be  doing  well. 

The  Archbishop's  full  title  is  Ihistrisimo  Senor  Doctor 
Don  Etdogio  G.  Gillozv,  Arzobispo  de  Oaxaca. 

I  was  admiring  a  full-length  portrait  of  the  prelate  in  a 
sort  of  cardinal's  red  robe,  when  he  explained  the  dress  in 
question  had  nothing  to  do  with  a  cardinal,  but  was  a  Capa 
Magna   which  he   holds    as    a    councillor  of    the    King   of 


AN  INTERESTING   TRIP    TO   O  AX  AC  A.  363 

Spain  !  He  sent  for  the  dress,  which  is  really  lov^ely.  A 
white  closely-pleated  shirt  has  a  lace  flounce  of  the  finest 
point,  about  twelve  inches  deep.  Over  this  is  worn  the 
Capa  Magna,  made  of  the  most  gorgeous  red  cardinal  silk, 
with  a  train  about  six  yards  long,  or  a  yard  and  a  half 
longer  than  those  worn  by  ladies  at  the  Court  of  St.  James'. 
The  hood  is  lined  and  ornamented  with  white  satin,  and 
gorgeous  jewels  add  to  the  effect.  Six  or  seven  times  a 
year — that  is  to  say,  at  the  great  festivals — x\rchbishop 
Gillow  wears  his  Capa,  and  as  he  walks  in  the  church 
procession  with  his  train  bearers,  the  effect  must  be  magni- 
ficent, for  he  has  a  fine  head  and  bearing,  worthy  of  the 
robe.  He  informed  me  with  pride  he  had  not  long  been 
back  from  the  Paris  Exhibition. 

"  I  attended  the  first  exhibition  in  1851,'  he  said,  "and 
have  been  to  every  one  that  has  been  held  since.  I  find 
them  an  education  in  every  way.  But  I  love  Mexico, 
especially  the  southern  country.  By-the-bye,  have  you 
ever  seen  an  antiburro  }  " 

"  No  ;  what  is  it  ?  " 

"  A  rare  animal,  still  found  in  parts,  half  donkey  and 
half  bull.  There  are  some  on  my  country  property 
even  now." 

There  are  wonderful  jewels  and  sacramental  cups  in 
Oaxaca,  as  in  so  many  other  towns  ;  but  that  is  not  sur- 
prising when  one  remembers  the  wealth  of  the  Mexican 
Church  until  Juarez  overthrew  the  Roman  Catholic  power. 

Archbishop  Gillow  showed  us  a  strange  old  wooden  Indian 
idol  lately  removed  from  one  of  the  churches.  He  would  not 
own  that  idols  still  are  objects  of  worship  in  some  of  the 
out-of-the-way  villages,  and  that  the  priests  dare  not 
remove  them  for  fear  of  perilling  their  lives.  Alter  all, 
the  idol  of  old  was  no  more  gruesome  than  are  some  of  the 
figures  of  Christ  and  the  Virgin  Mary  that  Mexican  Indians 
worship  to-day. 


364  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

The  Indian  is  full  of  superstition,  and  although  the 
Church  does  all  it  can  to  wipe  this  out,  it  cannot  succeed. 
There  are  people  in  the  mountains  who  are  said  to  be 
gifted  with  second  sight,  and  an  Indian  will  walk  for  days 
in  order  to  consult  one  of  these  oracles  as  to  whether  he 
ought  to  marry,  buy  a  farm,  or  go  a  journey.  A  little 
removed  from  the  main  track  one  can  find  idols  in  the  reed 
huts,  idols  that  the  people  love,  idols  that  have  been  in 
their  families  for  generations,  and  before  which  they  burn 
their  votive  offerings. 

Of  course  a  wax  model  wrapped  in  rags  can  be  burnt, 
drowned,  or  broken,  and  the  same  dire  calamity  will 
happen  to  the  person  the  effigy  represents  ! 

Nestizo  (performers  of  witchcraft)  are  supposed  to  be 
able  to  do  wondrous  things  to  keep  away  the  devil,  and 
manuscript  prayers  and  formulae  which  act  as  charms  can 
be  purchased  from  them.  Suppose  a  person  to  have  been 
drowned.  A  basin  or  saucer,  in  which  a  liohted  sacred 
candle  has  been  placed,  is  started  off  on  the  stream,  and  is 
supposed  to  stop  above  the  spot  where  the  body  lies  hidden. 

On  one  occasion  we  passed  an  idle  man,  and  a  friend 
called  out  to  him  something  about  Chtiparosa. 

"  What  did  you  say  ?  "   I  enquired. 

"  I  told  him  to  get  a  humming-bird  and  put  it  in  his  belt 
(faja),"  was  the  reply.  "  The  Indians  imagine  if  they  carry 
one  wrapped  in  bits  of  ribbon  or  wool  it  makes  them  indus- 
trious. Another  idea  is  to  carry  the  finger  bone  of  a  dead 
person  for  the  same  purpose." 

The  best  collection  of  idols  in  Mexico  belongs  to  Dr. 
Fernando  Sologuren  at  Oaxaca,  whose  young  daughter  is  a 
direct  descendant  of  Montezuma,  on  the  mother's  side. 

He  is  by  profession  a  doctor  of  medicine,  but  his  hobby 
is  archeeology,  and  whenever  he  has  a  holiday  he  goes  and 
digs.  One  or  two  things  in  his  museum  interested  me  most 
particularly.      He    has    a    numljcr   of  jade   ornaments    and 


o 


p^.">"'    ^■■iife&?»-w,-..:;v,- 


c  —    " 


:H'^ 


AN  INTERESTING    TRIP    TO    O  AX  AC  A.  365 

beads,  and  as  no  jade  of  the  kind  has  ever  been  found  in 
Mexico  this  again  points  to  the  fact  that  in  former  times 
Mexico  and  China  were  connected.  Even  more  marvellous 
than  this,  however,  is  the  fact  that  in  an  old  tomb  near 
Oaxaca  he  found  a  small  bronze  Chinese  idol  !  This  little 
personage  is  beautifully  made  ;  it  is  in  a  sitting  posture,  the 
figure  about  four  inches  high.  The  Doctor  once  showed  it 
to  a  great  Chinese  antiquarian,  who  said  that  from  the  work- 
manship he  should  judge  it  to  be  over  three  thousand  years 
old,  and  undoubtedly  Chinese.  Yet  this  figure  was  found 
buried  in  a  Zapotec  tomb  at  Oaxaca  !  How  did  it  get  there, 
unless,  like  its  friend  the  jade,  it  had  been  brought  over  from 
China  ? 

To  me,  as  a  casual  visitor  who  only  spent  six  months  in 
the  country,  it  seems  that  the  influence  of  China  and  Egypt 
is  noticeable  aeain  and  aQ:ain  in  the  ancient  Mexican  ruins, 
carvings,  and  ornaments.  One  constantly  finds  vases  of 
Egyptian  form,  and  although,  of  course,  I  may  be  totally 
wrong,  I  cannot  help  thinking  that  these  scattered  islands 
of  the  West  Indies  and  those  scattered  islands  of  Japan 
were  once  far  more  numerous  than  they  are  to-day,  and 
that  the  people  of  Egypt  and  China  had  communication 
with  Mexico  by  means  of  long  chains  of  islands  which 
enabled  them  to  travel  in  their  boats  without  covering  too 
enormous  an  area  of  open  sea,  as  the  Icelanders  did  to 
Ireland  and  Norway  in  the  open  boats  of  the  Vikings. 

Dr.  Sologuren  told  me  that  all  the  tombs  round  Oaxaca 
look  towards  the  setting  sun,  emblematic  of  the  setting  life. 
As  a  rule,  five  figures  of  gods  or  idols  are  found  in  each 
tomb,  generally  in  a  squatting  position,  the  same  posture,  in 
fact,  in  which  the  Indians  still  sit  to-day,  and  the  idols  are 
usually  about  two  feet  high.  They  are  not  beautiful,  indeed 
in  many  cases  one  might  truthfully  say  they  are  hideous  ; 
but  as  the  types  vary  very  much,  the  Doctor  thinks  that 
they  were  meant  to  represent  the  person  buried  in  the  tomb. 


366  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

There  were  vases  in  this  most  interesting  collection  which, 
w^hen  blown  into,  whistle  quite  prettily,  and,  judging  by  the 
shells  and  pots  found  which  formerly  had  been  utilised  for 
whistling,  that  must  have  been  a  favourite  amusement,  as  it 
is  to-day.  Most  of  the  modern  pottery  has  whistles  attached. 
There  were  beautifully  painted  urns,  arrow-heads,  and  won- 
derful Mixtec  or  Zapotec  jewellery.  The  gold  ear-rings  struck 
me  as  remarkable  ;  they  were  four  inches  in  circumference, 
and  quite  an  inch  wide  at  the  narrowest  part  ;  the  two  rims 
being  identical  in  size.  The  flesh  of  the  ear  was  bored 
through,  and  day  by  day  larger  instruments  were  forced  into 
it  until  the  hole  was  sufficiently  big  to  admit  these  enormous 
ear-rings,  like  miniature  cart-wheels,  being  pushed  through. 

A  "prehistoric  skull"  was  'peculiarly  interesting;  the 
bone  was  about  three  times  the  thickness  of  an  ordinary 
skull,  and  if  the  man  were  made  in  proportion  to  the  size  of 
his  head,  he  must  have  been  nine  or  ten  feet  high. 
This  private  collection  of  Dr.  Sologuren's  ought  to  find  its 
way  to  the  British  Museum.  Will  no  rich  man  step 
forward  and  secure  the  prize  and  thus  raise  our  Mexican 
collection  from  mediocrity  to  something  worthy  the  traditions 
of  the  place  } 

Concerning  arrow-heads,  it  is  a  remarkable  fact  that  in 
these  out-of-the-way  valleys  of  Mexico  the  Indians  still 
make  their  own  arrow-heads,  and  shoot  with  blow-pipes. 
A  man  will  fashion  his  arrow-head  in  a  few  minutes — five 
at  most — and  with  his  long  reed  blow-pipe  and  stone  head 
fixed  to  his  arrow,  shoot  with  no  uncertain  aim  ! 

The  State  of  Oaxaca  is  full  of  mines  of  gold,  silver,  and 
lead,  indeed  anything  and  everything  belonging  to  the 
mineral  world  seems  to  be  found  there.  The  enterprises  as 
a  rule  are  not  large,  being  for  the  most  part  small  mining 
camps  ;  but  they  make  an  income  and  manage  to  get  along. 
Doubtless  as  time  goes  on  great  developments  will  ensue 
and  large  companies  be  formed  to  work  the  wealth  of  those 


AN  INTERESTING    TRIP    TO   OAXACA.         367 

mountains,  but  I  hope  not  dishonest  bogus  companies,  for 
there  have  been  far  too  many  sad  stories  of  the  latter  in 
Mexico.  The  minerals  are  there  without  a  doubt  ;  but  it  is 
of  no  use  to  form  a  company  and  collect  enormous  sums  of 
money  to  work  a  mine,  when  the  company  only  acquires  a 
poor  or  a  bad  one,  and  puts  the  surplus  money  into  the 
pockets  of  its  own  directors.  I  must  say  again  here,  at 
the  risk  of  repetition,  that  it  seems  to  me  an  extraordinary 
thing  that  Americans  and  Englishmen  so  often  invest  their 
money  in  this  ridiculous  way,  without  even  taking  the 
trouble  to  find  out  whether  the  project  is  a  sound  one,  and 
then  they  are  surprised  and  indignant  when — as  is  too  often 
the  case — they  burn  their  fingers  ! 

The  mines  of  Mexico  contain  fathomless  possibilities,  at 
least  such  is  my  impression  after  travelling  a  good  deal  and 
talking  to  all  sorts  and  conditions  of  men  in  that  country. 
But  the  roguery  practised  is,  alas  !  unfathomable  also,  and 
often  proves  disastrous  to  widows  and  orphans,  who  are 
dazzled  by  the  golden  glitter  of  promises,  which  are  merely 
cleverly  concocted  falsehoods. 

Mines  at  the  best  of  times  are  doubtful  investments,  and 
it  would  appear  that  they  are  even  more  doubtful  in  Mexico 
than  elsewhere,  owing  to  the  class  of  men  who  have  got 
hold  of  some  of  them. 

Oaxaca  was  the  birth-place  of  General  Diaz,  and  the 
history  of  his  life  is  closely  connected  with  that  town.  In 
fact,  In  1858  he  defended  the  city  against  General  Cobos, 
and  pursued  him  to  Jalapa.  A  couple  of  years  later  Diaz, 
on  his  return  from  Tehuantepec,  fought  against  this  same 
enemy,  and  defeated  him  near  the  ruins  of  Mitla.  Probably 
the  greatest  battle  against  the  French  under  Marshal 
Bazaine  was  the  siege  of  Oaxaca  in  1865,  when  Diaz  was 
again  engaged  in  defending  his  own  town.  The  siege 
lasted  three  weeks,  by  which  time  Diaz  and  his  supporters 
were   entirely    destitute   of   food,    stores,    and    ammunition. 


368  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

They  succeeded  in  making  the  church  bells  into  cannon 
balls,  but  they  could  not  make  stones  into  bread.  It  is 
related  that  General  Diaz  stood  on  one  of  the  towers  of  the 
old  Convent  of  San  Francisco,  discharging  a  howitzer,  until 
his  position  became  so  perilous  that  he  was  positively 
dragged  away  by  his  own  officers.  This  did  not  prevent 
his  being  made  prisoner  and  taken  to  Puebla,  whence  he 
escaped.  He  then  marched  against  the  Imperialists,  and 
this  time  was  the  besieger,  where  little  more  than  a  year 
previously  he  had  been  the  besieged.  In  November,  1866, 
he  made  a  triumphal  entry  into  his  native  town,  marched  on 
to  Puebla,  and  finally  the  City  of  Mexico.  So  delighted 
were  the  people  of  Oaxaca  with  the  daring  of  their  citizen 
that  after  the  French  war  they  presented  him  with  an 
hacienda  as  a  free  gift,  where  he  lived  for  a  couple  of  years 
in  happiness  with  the  wife  he  had  married  by  proxy.  Many 
changes  followed.  The  General  visited  the  United  States, 
was  afterwards  proclaimed  President  of  Mexico,  and  during 
the  four  years  he  retired  before  re-election,  he  returned  to 
Oaxaca,  where  he  was  at  once  elected  Governor,  an  office 
he  continued  to  hold  until  again  made  President  in  18S0,  a 
post  he  has  held  ever  since.  Busy  as  this  great  man  is,  no 
item  of  my  visit  to  the  State  of  Oaxaca  was  omitted  from 
his  carefully-arranged  programme.  Each  day  was  carefully 
thought  out  and  planned. 

One  night  the  Deputy-Governor,  Nicolas  Garrido,  in  the 
absence  of  General  Gonzales,  gave  a  dinner  at  the  Muni- 
cipal Palace.  Now,  the  Municipal  Palace  in  Oaxaca  is  a 
very  grand  building  !  At  the  door  a  guard  of  soldiers  and 
Rurales  was,  of  course,  stationed  ;  the  carriages  and  horses 
were  all  in  the  patio,  according  to  custom.  Upstairs  were 
the  different  suites  of  apartments,  and  turning  along  a  wide 
corridor  to  the  right  we  entered  the  chief  salon,  upholstered 
in  yellow  and  brown  brocade,  with  gorgeous  mirrors  here 
and  there,    and  a   considerable  amount   of  gilding.      There 


AN  INTERESTING   TRIP    TO   OAXACA.         369 

was  the  inevitable  sofa  of  honour,  and  there,  in  two  direct 
lines  facinof  one  another  were  the  rows  of  half-a-dozen 
chairs,  as  at  Cuernavaca,  on  which  the  guests  sit,  forming 
three  sides  of  a  quadrangle. 

Eight  o'clock  was  the  dinner  hour,  but  when  we  arrived 
the  Governor  and  a  couple  of  gentlemen  were  the  only- 
Mexicans  present.  Meals  in  Mexico  are  never  served  for 
at  least  half-an-hour  after  the  appointed  time,  sometimes, 
indeed,  an  entire  hour  elapses  ;  for,  whatever  may  be  the 
virtues  of  that  strange  land,  punctuality  cannot  claim  to  be 
one  of  them. 

With  the  exception  of  one  Englishman  and  one  American 
no  person  wore  evening  dress,  the  rest  of  the  gentlemen 
being  attired  in  frock-coats  and  the  ladies  in  high  gowns. 
Each  new  arrival  was  introduced  to  me,  and  after  a  few 
words  in  English,  German,  French,  or  my  weird  and 
wonderful  Spanish,  I  returned  to  the  sofa. 

My  Spanish  was  a  source  of  great  amusement  to  everyone. 
It  was  fearless  and  bad  ;  "  Mrs.  Tweedie  talks  Latin"  was 
the  usual  comment.  This  sounds  terribly  learned,  but  really 
it  was  not  so  at  all.  A  number  of  French  words,  an  occasional 
Italian  phrase,  and  a  Latin  noun  here  and  there,  all  served 
up  together  with  a  smile  and  a  good  deal  of  English  sauce, 
make  a  fairly  satisfactory  Spanish  conversation. 

To  return  to  our  dinner-party.  At  about  8.40  the  party 
of  twenty-two  had  assembled,  and,  taking  the  Governor's 
offered  arm,  we  proceeded  along  innumerable  corridors, 
passing  e7z  route  a  large  portrait  of  President  Diaz,  which 
one  invariably  finds  in  every  Municipal  Palace  in  Mexico, 
until  finally  we  reached  the  dining-room.  The  table,  decked 
with  quantities  of  tropical  Bowers  and  little  bouquets  for 
each  of  the  guests,  looked  exceedingly  pretty. 

The  followingf  is  a  list  of  the  Government  officials  who 
were  present  at  this  dinner  at  the  Palace,  Oaxaca,  January 

31st,    IQOL. 

24 


370  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

Senor  Gobernador  del  Estado  (Governor  of  the  State), 
Licenciado  (lawyer),  Nicolas  Lopez  Garrido.  Senor  Secre- 
tario  del  Despacho  (Secretary  of  State),  Licenciado 
Francisco  Belmar.  Tesorero  del  Estado  (Treasurer  of  the 
State),  Seiior  Albino  Lopez  Garron.  Magistrados  de  la 
Suprema  Corte  (Magistrates  of  Supreme  Court),  Licen- 
ciado Francisco  Magro,  Licenciado  Rafael  Hernandez. 
Director  del  Instituto  de  Ciencias  y  Artes  del  Estado 
(Director  of  the  Institute),  Dr.  Aurelio  Valdivieso.  Seiior 
Catedratico  del  Instituto  (Professor  at  the  Institute),  Dr. 
Fernando  Sologilren.  Seiior  Diputado  del  Congreso  del 
Estado  (Congressman),  Dr.  Antonio  Alvarez,  and  the  two 
Mr.   Rickards. 

We  had  an  excellent  dinner  of  fifteen  or  twenty  courses, 
and,  according  to  custom,  everyone  drank  everyone  else's 
health  to  the  word  "  salud." 

Ices  made  their  appearance  about  half  way  through  the 
programme.  They  were  followed  by  the  national  dish, 
namely,  turkey,  and  after  the  dessert  various  puddings  came 
on,  according  to  Mexican  fashion.  Liqueurs,  cigarettes  and 
coffee  followed,  and  then  the  men  offered  their  arms  to  the 
women  and  escorted  them  back  solemnly  through  various 
salons  used  for  receptions,  to  the  great  drawing-room. 

I  had  a  most  interesting  chat  with  Seiior  Belmar,  who  has 
written  grammars  on  many  of  the  different  Indian  tongues, 
and  is  a  great  authority.  He  could  not  tell  me  the  exact 
number  of  languages  spoken  in  Mexico,  but  gave  a  list 
of  those  in  the  State  of  Oaxaca.  Some  people  enumerate 
more,  but  they  are  really  only  dialects,  he  thinks. 


LANGUAGES   SPOKEN    IN   THE   STATE   OF   OAXACA. 
Zapoteco  and  its  dialects. 
Mixteco  and  its  dialects. 
Mazateco  and  its  dialects. 
Trike. 
Choco. 
Cincateco. 
Chatino. 


Amurzgo. 

Chontal. 

Mixe  and  its  dialects. 

Loque. 

Thrave. 

Azteco  or  Mexicano. 


AN  INTERESTING    TRIP    TO    O  AX  AC  A.         371 

Senor  Francisco  Belmar  has  published  several  interesting 
books  on  the  subject  : 

The  "  iMexicano  or  Azteco "  and  the  "Zapoteco"  are 
essentially  different  in  their  grammars  and  dictionaries,  but, 
he  says,  both  of  them  belong  to  the  group  of  agglutinant 
languages. 

The  morning  after  the  banquet  we  were  up  before  day- 
light, and  ready  to  start  on  a  thirty-mile  drive  to  Mitla, 
where  are  probably  the  most  famous  ruins  in  all  Mexico. 

How  proud  Mexico  ought  to  be  of  her  ruins  !  They  are 
some  of  the  most  wonderful  monuments  in  the  history  of  the 
world,  and  show  that  here  dwelt  a  great  and  powerful 
nation  at  a  time  when  we  in  Northern  Europe  were  little 
better  than  savages  !  Here  in  Mexico,  three,  four,  perhaps 
five  thousand  years  ago,  there  existed  a  people  of  advanced 
ideas,  who  knew  how  to  build  monuments  which,  for 
masonry  and  carving,  teach  us  lessons  even  to-day  ;  who 
made  beautiful  pottery  and  elegant  vessels,  had  their  metal 
money  and  their  gold  ornaments,  who  were,  in  fact,  a  great 
people.  It  seems  difficult  to  realise  !  Yet  when  Confucius 
was  teaching  the  inhabitants  of  China  respect  for  their 
already  ancient  customs,  we  were  still  barbarians,  and  these 
Toltecs,  Zopatecs  and  Aztecs  w^ere  advanced  in  civilization. 

We  saw  something  of  the  quaintness  of  the  natives  of 
modern  Mexico  on  that  thirty-mile  drive  from  Oaxaca  to 
Mitla. 

Without  exception  that  was  quite  the  dustiest  journey  I 
ever  experienced  in  all  my  life,  even  worse  than  the  journey 
to  Oaxaca.  Mexico  is  verily  the  land  of  dust,  dust  such  as 
is  totally  unknown  in  Europe,  a  sharp,  gritty  sand  that 
hurts  one's  eyes  and  throat,  and  stings  one's  cheeks  like  an 
east  wind.  Then  there  are  continual  dust-spouts  ;  when 
passing  along  a  valley  one  may  see  half-a-dozen  at  a  time  ; 
just  a  column  of  pure  dust  rising  straight  into  the  air  for 
many  feet.      It  will  twirl  round  and  round  for  a  time  and 

24* 


372  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

then  suddenly  cease,  or  sometimes  the  top  of  the  column 
blows  off,  just  like  the  smoke  from  an  engine.  These 
whirlwinds  of  dust  are  intermittent,  often  near  tosfether, 
and  of  quite  unequal  magnitude.  They  only  come  in  the 
dry  winter.  The  consequence  is  that  blue  goggles  and  a 
large  sombrero  are  absolutely  essential  to  one's  comfort 
in  the  mountains. 

A  good  deal  of  the  dust  on  the  road  to  Mitla  was  caused 
by  bullock  waggons.  It  happened  to  be  the  weekly  market, 
and  there  seemed  to  be  hundreds  of  them.  A  couple  of 
oxen  were  yoked,  not  close  together,  but  far  apart,  so  far, 
indeed,  that  there  m.ust  have  been  some  six  or  eio^ht  feet 
between  the  heads  of  some  of  them,  and  those  great  lum- 
bering wheels  of  solid  wood  followed  in  the  track  made  by 
the  oxen's  feet.  This  method  of  spanning  the  animals 
appears  peculiar  to  Mitla.  On  their  heads  the  bulls  wore 
a  sort  of  shield,  resembling  an  inverted  plate  of  matting 
or  leather  ;  but  whether  this  was  to  keep  off  the  heat  of  the 
sun  or  fix  the  pole  to  which  their  horns  were  strapped  it  is 
impossible  to  say.  Thus  they  trudged  along,  those  slow  old 
things,  hour  after  hour,  their  noses  well  down  in  the  dust  ; 
the  only  excitement  being  an  occasional  prod  from  the 
driver's  spear. 

The  carts  were  laden  with  fruit,  flowers,  vegetables,  corn, 
stones,  earth,  anything  and  everything,  in  short  ;  and, 
although  a  woman  and  child  sometimes  drove,  the  man  and 
his  son  generally  plodded  along  on  foot.  Such  primitive 
carts,  too,  quite  ridiculously  primitive,  in  which  a 
modern  sewing-machine  looked  entirely  out  of  place. 

Another  example  of  the  incongruities  to  be  found  in 
Mexico,  where  most  things  are  primitive  and  hot,  is  the  fact 
that  natural  ice  is  not  uncommon  in  the  tropics.  It  is  pro- 
cured in  this  wise  ;  the  large  leaves  of  the  maguey  plant,  or 
big-leaved  palm,  are  plaited  like  a  box,  and,  taken  in  the 
evening  to  the  mountains,  are  filled  with  water  ;  sometimes 


(Jx  waygon,  showing  liig  wheels  and  had  streets. 


"'*'-5Sr> 


Native  Indian  Church  near  .Mitla,  where  the  entire  altar,  rails,  lamps,  etc. 
are  of  silver  ! 


[  To  face  page  372. 


AN  INTERESTING    TRIP    TO    OAXACA.  373 

a  hole  is  dug  in  the  root  of  a  pine  tree  or  a  shallow  hole 
made  in  the  earth  ;  these  also  are  filled  with  water,  which 
during  the  night  freezes,  and  in  the  early  morning  the  ice 
which  rises  is  fetched  by  Indians,  who  consider  it  a  great 
luxury,  as  it  undoubtedly  is. 

How  we  enjoyed  cold  tea  with  a  piece  of  ice  in  it  after 
our  long  dusty  mountain  drive  ! 

Most  travellers  agree  cold  tea  is,  /«r  excellence,  the  drink 
for  a  hot  country,  just  plain  tea,  drawn  off  from  the  leaves. 
It  does  more  to  quench  thirst  than  any  other  liquid  in  the 
world  ;  lemon  or  lime  in  water  come  next,  but  alcoholic 
beverages  only  diminish  thirst  for  the  moment. 

Numerous  folk  were  riding,  often  pillion  fashion,  on  horses, 
mules  or  donkeys,  along  the  market  road  ;  but  it  was  a 
much  more  usual  performance  for  the  animal  to  be  laden  up 
until  it  could  hardly  move.  Then  on  the  top  of  everything 
was  perched  a  woman  and  her  baby.  The  husband  marched 
solemnly  beside  her. 

To  a  certain  limited  extent  the  women  in  Mexico  have 
an  easy  time  ;  they  never  work  in  the  fields,  but  they  do 
everything  else,  and  at  Oaxaca  they  have  a  flourishing 
little  business  of  their  own. 

In  the  surrounding  villages  the  women  get  up  early, 
grind  their  Indian  corn,  make  their  tortillas — the  bread  of 
the  country — pack  them  in  a  big  basket,  which  they  carry 
on  their  backs,  and  while  these  tortillas  are  still  hot,  they 
trot  off  to  the  town  and  sell  them.  These  baskets  are 
heavy,  they  rest  on  the  small  of  the  back,  as  does  the  creel 
of  a  Scotch  fish-wife,  and  are  supported  by  a  band  across 
the  forehead.  The  women  are  doubled  right  over  with  the 
weight ;  their  burden  is  hot,  and  the  sun  scorching,  yet 
they  run  miles  and  miles  to  dispose  of  their  wares. 

Indians  are  so  accustomed  to  bear  heavy  weights  on 
their  backs,  that  when  they  are  going  up  a  mountain  they 
will  take  up  a  stone  if  they  have  nothing  else  to  carry,  just 


374  MEXICO   AS    I  SAW  IT. 

for  the  purpose  of  securing  their  balance,  therefore  perhaps, 
after  all,  our  pity  is  thrown  away  when  we  see  them  strug- 
gling, as  we  suppose,  under  a  terrible  load. 

We  saw  some  women  in  the  valley  with  marvellous  hair  ; 
there  were  four  or  five  whose  tresses  lay  upon  the  ground 
when  they  stood  erect.  Yet  patent  hair  wash  is  unknown  ! 
This  tribe  is  undoubtedly  good-looking  ;  they  have  not  the 
flat  nose  of  the  Aztecs  at  Xochicalco — the  Zapotec  nose  is 
more  Napoleonic  in  style.  They  are  a  very  small  people, 
except  on  the  isthmus  of  Tehuantepec,  a  little  farther  south, 
where  the  finest  Indians  in  Mexico  to-day  exist. 

The  women  of  the  Mitla  Valley  are  grown  up  at  twelve 
or  thirteen  years  of  age  ;  they  usually  marry  at  fourteen, 
while  the  husbands  are  only  a  couple  of  years  older.  High 
festival  is  held  at  a  wedding,  the  feasting  often  continuing 
for  three  days.  Each  district  performs  the  marriage  rite — 
when  it  is  performed  I — differently.  As  a  rule  the  god- 
parents present  the  bride  with  her  dress  (enaguas)  and  head 
shawl  (rebozo),  and  at  the  ceremony  the  young  couple  wear 
crowns  of  natural  flowers.  The  end  of  the  festivities  is 
the  formal  carriage  of  all  the  girl's  possessions  to  her  new 
home,  amidst  the  tears  of  her  parents  at  parting  with  her. 

Skeleton  weddings  were  customary  in  Southern  Mexico 
until  four  years  ago,  when  they  were  prohibited  by  the 
sheriff  or  magistrate  (Jefe  Politico).  These  weddings  took 
place  on  All  Souls'  Day,  the  day  of  prayer  for  departed 
souls,  or  rather  began  then,  and  usually  lasted  a  week. 
Oaxaca  was  a  great  place  for  these  gruesome  performances. 
A  woman's  skeleton  was  dressed  up  as  a  bride  with  the 
skull  showing  ;  the  bridegroom  was  placed  at  the  altar  rails 
beside  her,  in  full  wedding  attire,  and  they  were  accompanied 
by  other  skeletons  dressed  as  Indians  or  monks.  The  idea 
was  that  "  in  the  midst  of  life  we  are  in  death,"  and  the 
populace  prayed  all  round  these  weird  figures,  and,  in 
some  of  the  churches,  food  and  sweets  were  brought  for  the 


AN  INTERESTING    TRIP    TO   OAXACA.         375 

skeletons.  It  was  a  great  occasion,  when  everyone  called 
on  everyone  else,  drank  wine  and  ate  cakes.  Could  any- 
thing more  horrible  possibly  be  imagined  than  a  skeleton 
wedding  ?  The  descriptions  given  me  by  some  of  my 
friends  were  hideous. 

The  Government  thought  these  skeleton  weddings  harm- 
ful and  ridiculous,  and  consequently  they  were  prohibited  ; 
but  they  are  still  talked  about  by  the  Indians  with  awe  and 
respect.  They  are  forbidden  in  the  town  of  Oaxaca,  but 
in  the  surrounding  districts  the  unpleasing  spectacle  may 
still  be  seen  on  All  Souls'  Day.  Sometimes  a  skeleton 
dressed  up  in  this  way  is  laid  in  the  church,  before  the 
altar,  as  a  reminder  to  prepare  for  Death  and  the  Judg- 
ment Day. 

Devil-dances  go  on  more  or  less  all  over  Mexico  among 
the  inhabitants  on  the  feast  day  of  each  particular  village, 
named  after  the  village  saint.  The  Indians  paint  their 
bodies  to  represent  skeletons  and  dance  wildly.  They 
light  a  fire,  and  in  the  dark  of  night  they  yell  and  shriek 
and  perform  mad  antics.  They  wear  big  feathered  head- 
dresses, bits  of  looking-glass,  beads  and  ornaments  as  at 
Guadalupe  ;  but  the  custom  is  dying  out,  and  is  now  kept 
up  more  for  a  lark  than  any  serious  reason.  Originally 
they  represented  the  Aztecs  fighting  for  freedom  against 
the  Spaniards,  but  the  meaning  is  being  lost  and  forgotten. 

Oddly  enough  the  Zapotec  language  as  spoken  to-day  is 
identically  the  same  as  that  given  in  the  old  grammars. 
I  learnt  one  word,  "chang,"  meaning  good-day,  and  most 
useful  it  proved. 

It  is  strange,  however,  that  the  names  in  Oaxaca  State 
should  be  of  Aztec  origin,  but  so  it  is,  and  this  is  yet 
another  of  the  Mexican  riddles  still  awaitino'  solution. 
Some  of  the  village  names  are  curious  ;  for  instance,  we 
passed  one  called  "  St.  James  of  the  Drunkards,"  while 
its  near  companion   was  "  The  Five  Flowers." 


376  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

Opposite  "  St.  James  of  the  Drunkards  "  is  Monte  Alban, 
where  there  are  numerous  tumuli  which  have  not  yet  been 
opened.  What  a  mine  of  archaeological  surprises  exists  in 
Mexico  ;  not  one-quarter  of  the  graves  and  tombs  have  ever 
been  disturbed.  Any  responsible  person  can  obtain  per- 
mission from  Government  to  dig  ;  but  he  has  to  do  so  at 
his  own  expense,  and  one-half  of  what  he  finds  must  go 
to  the  Mexican  museum,  a  fair  arrangement.  The  Govern- 
ment helps  him  in  every  possible  way,  and  gives  him  a  free 
hand,  although  the  Government  inspector  has  to  be  present 
during  the  excavations. 

Of  course  we  stopped  to  see  the  big  tree  of  Tule.  It  is 
one  of  the  biggest  trees  in  the  world,  not  excepting  the 
giants  of  California.  Imagine,  it  is  one  hundred  and  fifty- 
four  feet  in  circumference  at  a  height  of  six  feet  from  the 
ground,  or,  to  give  a  better  idea  of  its  size — twenty-eight 
men  with  outstretched  arms,  their  finger-tips  just  touching, 
can  barely  span  its  girth  !  It  is  a  cypress,  of  which  there 
are  many  in  the  country,  especially  the  famous  grove  near 
Diaz'  Palace  at  Chapultepec. 

There  are  several  queer  caves  along  the  route  to  Mitla, 
in  which  some  of  the  poorer  Indians  still  dwell,  so  there  are 
cave-dwellers  in  Mexico  even  at  this  period  of  the  world's 
history  ! 

Our  next  halt  was  at  Tlacolula,  about  twenty-four  miles 
from  Oaxaca,  where  the  Jefe  Politico — one  of  the  most 
charming  of  the  many  Jefes  Politicos  I  had  the  pleasure 
of  meeting — was  waiting  to  bid  us  welcome.  After  making 
acquaintance  with  nearly  two  dozen  of  these  officials,  I  do 
not  hesitate  to  say  that  Sefior  Andres  Ruiz  was  one  of  the 
nicest  and  brightest  of  them  all. 

He  welcomed  us  in  the  name  of  the  State,  and  as  we 
entered  his  patio  the  band  struck  up.  He  gave  us  luncheon, 
and  as  we  had  been  travelling  for  some  five  hours,  we  were 
not  sorry  for  the  meal,  which  included  a  delicious  ice-cream 


AN  INTERESTING   TRIP    TO   OAXACA.         Z77 

As  soon  as  the  repast  was  over  he  asked  if  I  should  like  to 
see  his  church,  and  knowing  that  it  was  famous  for  its 
carving,  I  quickly  assented,  after  accepting  a  bouquet  of 
pink  and  yellow  roses  brought  by  the  village  children. 

This,  be  it  understood,  was  a  purely  Indian  village  ;  the 
people  were  of  the  Zapotec  tribe  ;  it  was  twenty-four  miles 
from  a  station — the  railway  line  will  run  to  Mitla  shortly 
after  this  book  appears  in  print — so  that  the  village  was 
simply  a  sample  of  an  ordinary  native  village  ;  yet  it  had 
its  market  place,  its  public  garden,  its  band,  and  a  small 
inn. 

Everyone  who  visits  Mexico  should  poke  about  an  Indian 
village  such  as  Tlacolula,  and  enjoy  the  priceless  objects  it 
often  contains.  Imagine  our  surprise  in  finding  at  this 
typical  little  Indian  village  a  really  beautiful  church,  with 
fine  carvings  and  paintings,  and  the  entire  altar  fronts 
made  of  solid  silver  !  There  were  no  cloths  or  draperies, 
just  solid  silver,  measuring  some  fourteen  feet  by  three 
high.  The  entire  frontals  were  embossed  and  chiselled  in 
repousse  work,  and  truly  magnificent  silver  lamps  hung 
before  them,  lamps  that  Rome  herself  would  be  glad  to 
possess  ;  the  candlesticks  standing  six  or  seven  feet  high 
were  of  the  same  precious  metal.  There  they  are  in  the 
little  church  where  the  door  is  always  left  open  ;  but  woe 
betide  anyone  who  dared  to  harm  them,  for  Indians  are  hot- 
blooded,  and  these  are  their  own  treasures  ;  they  would  kill 
anyone  who  stole  or  even  shifted  an  article. 

Some  of  the  robes,  jewels,  and  cups  of  the  priests  are 
lovely,  in  the  best  Spanish  style,  and  all  this  rare  treasure 
belongs  to  dark-skinned  Zapotecs,  who,  be  it  owned,  love 
and  revere  their  possessions  and  keep  them  spotlessly  clean. 
The  contents  of  that  little  out-of-the-way  church  would 
do  credit  to  any  cathedral. 

Nearly  all  the  churches  of  Mexico  are  domed,  and  covered 
with  beautiful  tiles  or  with  gold.     A   great   many  of  these 


378  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

domes  and   towers,    however,    are  quite  crooked,   owing  to 
earthquakes. 

On  the  tower  of  Tlacokila  Church  were  four  musicians 
who  played  on  the  reed  instruments  of  the  country,  and 
some  Mexican  flags  had  been  put  up.  Wonderful  to  relate, 
it  was  not  a  feast  day  ;  in  Mexico  there  really  seem  to  be 
more  feast  days  than  any  other  days  in  the  year,  but  this 
was  still  an  extra  holiday  in  honour  of  the  English  visitor  ! 


s 


379 


CHAPTER  XXIII. 


ANCIENT    RUINS    OF    MITLA. 


I  A.M  no  archseoloQ;ist,  but  I  found  the  ruins  of  Mitla  most 
interesting  and  wonderful,  the  more  so  that  new  discoveries 
had  been  made  four  days  previous  to  my  visit,  which 
consequently  heightened  their  charm.  The  village  lies  in 
a  flat  and  somewhat  ugly  valley,  where  every  surrounding 
hill  has  its  history.  On  all  sides  there  are  ancient  tombs, 
many  of  which  have  not  been  opened  ;  there  are  tumuli 
everywhere,  the  whole  valley  is  teeming  with  treasures  only 
waiting  to  be  explored,  and  there  in  the  midst  are  the  ruins 
of  the  great  temples  themselves.  In  that  time,  so  long  ago, 
about  which  we  know  so  little,  the  whole  district  must  have 
been  thickly  populated,  or  why  these  enormous  temples, 
those  fortresses  on  the  hills  and  endless  tumuli,  or,  as  our 
Mexican  friends  term  them,  pyramids  ? 

One  would  hardly  expect  to  find  a  little  hotel  in  such  a 
wild  part  ;  but  there  is  actually  an  hacienda  where  people 
can  put  up.  With  a  crack  of  the  whip  we  drove  up  in 
style  to  the  door,  where  "  mine  host  "  was  waiting  to 
greet  us. 

We  shook  hands  according  to  custom,  and  he  bowed  me 
to  the  room  which  had  been  ordered  by  the  Governor  of 
the  State,  whose  guest  I  was  during  my  week's  stay  in  the 
State  of  Oaxaca.  Two  things  struck  me  at  once,  namely, 
the  marvellous  pictures  on  the  walls,  and  a  couple  of  soup- 
plates  near  the    bed,    which    were   filled  with  cigarettes  of 


38o  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

different   kinds  ;    apparently  a  little  extra  attention   for  my 
comfort ! 

The  pictures  had  been  executed  by  the  landlord's  daugh- 
ter ;  they  were  wonderful  embroideries  in  chenille  and 
beads,  and  many  other  things,  representing  weird  scenes 
and  strange  animals,  and  were  carefully  framed  and  pre- 
served under  glass.  In  the  future  they  will  probably  find 
their  way  to  some  museum. 

x'\mong  others,  the  Governor  had  kindly  arranged  for 
Dr.  Sologiiren  to  be  one  of  my  numerous  escort  to  Mitla, 
and  this  gentleman  proved  a  delightful  guide,  as  he  had 
done  a  vast  amount  of  excavating  there  himself,  and  has  a 
wonderful  collection  of  ancient  idols,  as  remarked  in  a 
previous  chapter. 

My  good  fortune,  however,  did  not  end  here,  for  we  were 
at  once  welcomed  by  Sefior  Batres,  the  Government  in- 
spector, whose  acquaintance  I  had  made  a  few  weeks 
before  in  the  drains  of  Mexico,  when  he  showed  me  the 
newly-found  Aztec  altar.  Senor  Batres  was  employed  at 
Mitla  restoring  parts  of  the  temples,  where  walls  had  fallen 
down  with  age  or  been  cracked  by  earthquakes. 

A  few  minutes  later  Professor  Marshall  Saville,  from  the 
New  York  Museum,  appeared  upon  the  scene.  He  was 
completing  his  researches  at  Mitla,  and  only  a  few  days 
previously  had  discovered  a  new  Cruciform  Cross.  The 
Professor,  an  extremely  good-looking  young  man,  was  most 
kind  ;  he  gave  me  pamphlets  and  photographs,  and  did 
everything  in  his  power  to  make  my  visit  pleasant. 

It  was  a  strange — but,  for  me,  most  fortunate — occurrence 

that  the  three  men  who,  in    modern   times,  had  done  all  the 

excavations  at  Mitla,  should  meet  together  at  the  very  time 

^when  I  was  there,  for   under  their  kindly  guidance  I  saw  so 

much  more  than  could  otherwise  have  been  the  case. 

Next  morning  early  the  song  of  the  mocking-bird  filled 
the  air  ;  such  a  pretty  song,  too,  until  the    mocking  instinct 


ANCIENT  RUINS    OF  MIT  LA.  381 

was  suddenly  aroused,  and  the  bird  left  its  own  natural 
notes  to  imitate  the  cackle  of  a  hen  who  was  proudly 
announcing  the  fact  that  she  had  laid  an  &%%.  That 
exultant  cry  seems  to  be  known  all  over  the  world,  except- 
ing Iceland,  where  cocks  and  hens  were  not,  when  I  visited 
that  land  a  few  years  ago. 

The  mocking-bird  did  its  best  to  imitate  Mrs.  Hen,  and 
then,  contented  with  its  efforts,  went  back  to  its  own  inter- 
rupted song. 

Mexico  is  a  strange  land  of  beautiful  birds  of  paradise 
and  wondrous  flowers  ;  but  it  is  only  the  plainer  birds  that 
sing,  for  brilliant  plumage  hides  no  nightingale's  throat,  and 
but  few  of  the  lovely  flowers  have  any  scent ! 

Very  little  is  really  known  concerning  the  ruins  of  ancient 
Mexico,  of  which  those  at  Mitla  are  probably  the  finest 
specimens.  Every  archaeologist  has  a  different  theory  ; 
each  thinks  he  is  able  to  prove  his  ideas,  and  yet  each 
generally  disagrees  with  the  other. 

The  date  of  these  ruins  is  absolutely  unknown  ;  they 
may  be  anything  from  two  to  five  thousand  years  old,  and 
that  leaves  a  wide  margin  for  speculation  to  wander  over. 
Then  again,  various  tribes  are  supposed  to  have  built  those 
wondrous  temples  ;  but  in  all  probability  they  are  of 
Zapotec  origin.  The  descendants  of  the  Zapotec  tribe 
live  in  the  neighbourhood  to-day,  and  bear  the  strongest 
resemblance  to  the  faces  found  carved  on  the  idols  and 
pottery  discovered  in  the  tombs.  The  type  of  these  idols 
is  somewhat  Jewish  and  a  little  Egyptian  ;  with  good 
features,  the  Roman  nose  of  the  Jew,  the  thick  lips  and 
heavy  eyelids  of  the  Egyptians,  and  even  the  wig  curl 
over  the  ear.  They  wore  breast-plates,  ear-rings,  necklaces 
and  other  ornaments  of  stone  or  gold,  some  of  which  are 
of  fine  workmanship.  They  were  not  a  rude  people,  indeed, 
on  looking  at  some  of  their  painting,  the  stone  masonry 
of  their  walls,   and  many  of  their  idols,  one  pictures   them 


382  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

a  people  of  highly  advanced    civilisation,   even   if  they   did 
live  five  thousand  years  ago. 

How  am  I,  in  a  few  pages,  to  give  the  slightest  idea  of 
Mitla,  a  place  about  which  so  many  volumes  have  been 
written  by  archaeologists  of  every  nationality  ?  Among 
the  best  are  Charnay's  book  on  the  "  Ancient  Cities  of  the 
New  World,"  William  Holmes'  "  Archeeological  Studies 
among  the  Ancient  Cities  of  Mexico,"  Payne's  "  History  of 
the  New  World,"  Bancroft  and  Sandelier  Medaillac's  "  Pre- 
historic America,"  all  of  which  are  full  of  interesting  in- 
formation. 

So  little  were  the  ruins  of  Mitla  appreciated  or  cared  for 
during  the  last  two  or  three  hundred  years,  that  the  stones 
were  taken  out  to  build  the  church,  or  to  form  any  building 
or  coping  that  was  necessary  in  the  village  !  Part  of  the 
place  was  turned  into  a  stable,  and  the  priest  lived  in  a 
frescoed  chamber,  one  of  many  now  whitewashed !  But 
under  the  able  guidance  of  President  Diaz  this  is  being- 
altered,  and  Professor  Batres  is  now  employed  by  the 
Government  in  replacing  as  many  of  the  stones  as  he  can, 
in  putting  iron  supports  under  door-ways,  where  the  enor- 
mous lintels  have  been  cracked  by  earthquakes,  and 
propping  up  walls  which  seem  likely  to  fall. 

All  these  restorations  are  being  made  none  too  soon. 
Sefior  Batres  has  replaced  one  wall  which  had  almost 
entirely  fallen  down.  It  seems  that  terrible  desecration  has 
gone  on  in  the  past  few  years  owing  to  tourists  and  others. 
What  a  pity  it  is  that  Mexico  has  no  society — such  as  we 
have  in  England — for  the  preservation  of  her  ancient 
buildings !  Why,  they  are  chapters  in  history  which,  once 
destroyed,  can  never  be  replaced.  Mexico  ought  to  guard 
her  ancient  ruins  as  her  proudest  possessions  ;  they  are 
unique,  and  not  a  stone  of  such  a  history  should  be 
destroyed  by  the  hands  of  modern  man.  Once  defaced — 
as,  alas  !  nearly  all  the  mural  paintings  have  already  been  at 


ANCIENT  RUINS   OF  MIT  LA.  383 

Mitla — they  are  gone  for  ever,  and  one  of  Mexico's  greatest 
attractions  is  lost  to  the  world.  The  Government  up  to 
the  present  has  not  been  vigilant  enough  in  the  preser- 
vation of  her  treasures. 

And  now  to  describe  my  own  impressions  of  the  ruins  of 
Mitla.  After  stumbling  over  a  quantity  of  newly-excavated 
debris  we  suddenly  found  ourselves  in  a  great  square  court- 
yard. Facing  us,  and  also  to  the  right  and  left,  were  the 
ruins  of  the  temples,  but,  alas  !  the  fourth  side — where  we 
stood — had  been  almost  destroyed. 

Each  temple  was  approached  by  a  flight  of  steps  running 
its  entire  length,  and  each  temple  had  three  doors,  as  the 
majority  of  Mexican  churches  have  to-day.  There  were  no 
rounded  arches.  Everything  at  Mitla  is  straight  and  in 
line.  One  imagines  they  were  temples,  not  because  there 
are  altars,  but  because  there  are  tombs  beneath,  and,  being 
in  a  valley,  they  could  hardly  be  fortifications,  added  to 
which  there  are  many  fortifications  of  totally  different  form 
amid  the  surrounding  hills.  Why  there  were  four  such 
temples  is  another  question,  unless  they  were  raised  to  the 
four  winds  ! 

The  entire  walls  were  ornamented  with  carvings,  which 
are  known  as  Grecqiies.  Some  of  these  are  of  charming 
design  ;  they  are  cut  in  the  solid  slabs  of  stone,  or  some- 
times mosaiced  on.  When  the  latter  was  the  case 
thousands  and  thousands  of  different  pieces  of  stone  were 
employed  to  form  the  geometrical  pattern  arranged  in  formal 
panels. 

It  will  be  remembered  that  at  Xochicalco  human  figures, 
large  eagles,  and  serpents  formed  the  design  ;  there  was 
nothing  conventional,  and  the  all-over  pattern  was  chiselled 
out  of  the  stone  by  the  Aztecs  ;  but  at  Mitla  it  is  absolutely 
different.  Every  pattern  is  strictly  geometrical ;  there  are 
neither  figures  nor  animals  ;  but  fifteen  distinct  geometrical 
designs  are  found,    repeated  again  and  again  in  panels,   a 


384  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

q;ooc1    idea    of   which  can   be    formed  from  the  illustration, 
"  The  Hall  of  the  Grecques." 

It  was  certainly  most  impressive  ;  the  size  of  the  place, 
the  beautiful  workmanship  of  the  geometrical  carvings,  the 
wonderful  proportions  of  everything,  betrayed  the  record  of 
a  great  people. 

The  "  Hall  of  the  Monoliths"  is  perhaps  the  best  known 
of  the  ruins  at  Mitla  ;  the  columns  are  not  carved.  They 
stand  about  eleven  feet  four  inches  high,  and  formerly 
supported  a  wooden  roof,  the  holes  where  the  beams  were 
fixed  being  visible  in  the  walls.  There  are  no  carved 
monoliths  among  these  ruins,  in  which  they  differ  from  those 
of  Yucatan.  Professor  Saville  thinks  that : — "  Mitla  and 
the  Yucatan  ruins  probably  belong  to  the  same  epoch,  and 
are  the  remains  of  a  people  having  kindred  ancestors." 

He  suggests  that  the  building  of  Mitla  was  effected 
by  the  Nahuas,  and  that  Zapotecan  occupancy  was  the 
result  of  conquest.  He  adds  further  : — "  Modern  research 
points  to  a  common  ancestry  of  both  Nahuan  and  Mayan 
people." 

Professor  Marshall  Saville's  most  important  excavations 
have  been,  undoubtedly,  in  the  courtyard  of  the  palaces  or 
temples,  where  he  has  just  brought  to  light  a  stone-work 
substructure,  showing  that  this  part  of  the  building  had 
received  as  much  attention  as  the  edifices  themselves.  It 
had  a  beautiful  face  of  cement,  and  the  inclined  stone  slabs 
which  form  the  long  steps  to  the  various  door- ways  are  of 
perfect  workmanship.  The  courtyard  measurement  of  the 
subterranean  gallery  is  exactly  1 1 7  feet  square,  so  exact 
that  the  four  sides  are  not  a  fraction  out  !  The  width  of 
the  stair-ways  leading  up  to  each  of  the  four  edifices  is 
equally  correct. 

The  cement  floor  was  formerly  painted  red  in  almost 
Pompeian  colouring  ;  the  basis  of  the  substructure,  covered 
with  cement,  was  also  red.      There  is  little  doubt  that  these 


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ANCIENT  RUINS   OF  MITLA.  385 

people  knew  how  to  mix  paints  with  ease,  for  the  walls  were 
apparently  washed  with  whitish  earths  and  iron  oxides. 
Then  again,  such  scraps  as  remain  of  the  mural  decorations 
are  of  many  colours,  although  white  and  red  predominate. 
The  paintings,  unlike  the  carvings,  are  not  geometrical,  but 
represent  life  forms  conventionally  treated.  Reproductions 
of  these  appear  in  Dr.  Eeler's  (of  Berlin)  work  on  Mitla. 
These  mural  designs  show  the  remarkable  mythological  sub- 
jects so  well  reproduced  in  Lord  Kingsborough's  wonderful 
book. 

The  steps  show  distinct  signs  of  having  been  repaired, 
which  Professor  Saville  thinks  was  probably  the  work  of 
the  Toltecs.  When  these  steps  are  all  excavated,  and  the 
debris  is  entirely  cleared  away,  the  temples  will  look  more 
imposing  than  they  have  done  for  centuries. 

The  new  Cruciform  Chamber,  only  opened  a  few  days 
before  our  arrival,  has  its  entrance  in  the  courtyard,  and 
passes  directly  under  the  steps  of  the  substructure. 

"Will  you  come  and  see  my  new  cross?"  asked  Pro- 
fessor Saville,  to  which  proposition  we  willingly  assented, 
and  he  accordingly  sent  one  of  the  peons — who  were  busily 
engaged  in  carrying  earth  away  from  the  courtyard — to 
fetch  a  lamp. 

It  was  the  strangest  entrance  imaginable  ;  a  large  stone 
slab  which  had  closed  the  mouth  of  the  tomb  had  been 
thrown  back  slanting-wise,  and  down  this  we  had  to  slide. 
It  was  too  large  to  step  or  crawl  across,  so  the  only  way  to 
manage  was  to  sit  down  and  just  slip  along  the  stone.  This 
would  have  been  all  right  if  there  had  been  standing  room 
at  the  bottom  ;  but  unfortunately  the  opening  was  barely 
three  feet  in  height,  and  the  entrance  for  some  distance  was 
scarcely  so  much. 

The  Professor  went  first  with  the  lamp,  and  then  I  slid 
after  him  as  ungracefully  as  possible — and  that  is  saying  a 
good    deal.     Arrived    at   the  bottom,  I   found   I   could  not 

25 


386  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

stand,  I  could  not  even  sit  erect  with   my  big  Mexican  hat 
on  my  head,  so  off  it  had  to  come. 

"  Give  me  time  to  breathe,"  I  cried,  for  in  spite  of  the 
little  lamp  it  was  almost  impossible  to  see,  "  and  tell  me  if  I 
am  to  crawl,  or  if  there  is  room  to  walk  bent  double  ?  " 

"  You  can  walk  bent  double,  but  really  double,  for  the 
passage  is  only  three  feet  high  for  a  distance  of  a  few  feet," 
was  the  cheerful  reply  ;  "  further  on  you  can  stand  upright." 

So  bent  double,  literally  double — I  am  sure  the  passage 
was  not  even  three  feet  hioh — I  endeavoured  to  walk,  and, 
as  the  Yankees  say,  "  got  right  there." 

Ah,  here  was  relief  !  here  we  could  stand  !  and  what  a 
surprise  ! 

The  tomb,  which  is  made  in  the  shape  of  an  exact  cross, 
is  eight-and-a-half  feet  high,  so  anyone  can  stand  erect 
happily.  The  length  of  the  arms  is  precisely  forty-five  feet, 
and  every  inch  of  the  walls  is  carved  ! 

It  was  remarkable,  truly  remarkable  !  In  the  first  place 
it  was  an  exact  cross — that  same  cross  which  seems  to  be 
found  all  over  the  world  and  in  all  forms  of  religion,  yet 
built  long  before  the  introduction  of  Christianity.  In  this 
case  the  foot  faced  the  west,  the  idea  again  being  that  the 
soul  went  to  rest  with  the  setting  sun.  The  door-ways  of 
the  tombs  invariably  face  this  way,  and  are  sealed  by  large 
stones. 

There  we  stood  in  the  tomb  of  some  king  or  priest,  a 
tomb  that  had  not  been  opened  for  centuries  untold,  and, 
with  the  exception  of  Mrs.  Saville,  I  was  the  first  woman 
who  had  entered  that  carved  edifice  may  be  for  thousands 
of  years. 

"  How  wonderfully  those  stones  fit,"  I  exclaimed,  amazed 
at  their  size  and  workmanship. 

"  Yes  ;  the  mason's  art  was  more  perfect  then  than  it  is 
to-day,  and  Mida  is  an  excellent  example.  In  those  days 
they  cut  and  fitted  their  work  to  perfection.    Those  grecques 


ANCIENT  RUINS   OF  MIT  LA.  387 

were  cut,  whether  by  stone  chisels,  or  how,  no  one  knows, 
for  few  implements  of  any  kind  have  been  found." 

"  Is  this  in  any  way  Aztec  ?  "  I  asked,  noting  its  dis- 
similarity to  other  Aztec  work. 

"  No,  to  my  mind  it  resembles  Toltec  and  Zapotec  work- 
manship far  more  than  Aztec,"  was  the  Professor's  reply. 

In  the  other  cross  found  by  the  early  Spaniards  under 
another  of  the  temples,  the  grecques  are  of  mosaic  work, 
each  bit  of  the  pattern  being  formed  by  a  separate  piece  of 
stone  being  fitted  together  to  form  the  whole  ;  but  in  the 
case  of  this  new  Cruciform  the  grecques  are  carved  in  the 
solid  stone,  and  though  they  have  been  buried  for  centuries, 
they  are  simply  perfect  in  condition.  The  depth  of  the 
carving  is  about  three-quarters  of  an  inch,  and  as  a  rule  the 
serrated  edges  of  the  patterns  are  slightly  bevelled. 

No  one  knows  how  they  were  carved  ;  but  there  are 
distinct  marks  of  pencil  or  paint,  or  whatever  they  used  in 
those  far  away  times  (not  burnt  wood,  for  that  would  have 
worn  off),  which  show  that  the  pattern  was  carefully  traced 
before  the  carvers  began  their  work.  The  metric  system 
comes  out  perfectly  in  all  the  grecque  work,  which  looks  as 
if  these  ancient  people  measured  by  metric  rule  ! 

Nothing  of  any  importance  was  found  in  this  new  tomb  ; 
a  few  bones,  odd  broken  bits  of  pottery,  and  a  little  earth 
and  rubbish.  Sometimes,  however,  burnt  bones  are  found, 
sometimes  whole  skeletons,  often  in  a  sitting  posture.  This 
tomb  had  evidently  been  emptied  of  corpse,  idols,  and 
offerings,  and  then  time  had  closed  its  entrance.  This 
entrance  question  struck  me  as  strange,  I  saw  four  of  the 
five  known  Cruciforms,  all  more  or  less  perfect,  which  all 
showed  that  endless  time  and  pains  had  been  expended  on 
them,  and  yet  every  one  had  a  horribly  awkward  entrance, 
just  a  long,  low  passage-way,  rough  and  rude  in  the  extreme. 
Why,  if  the  Zapotecs  paid  such  attention  to  the  cross  itself, 
did  they  make  the  entrance  to  it  like  a  drain  }    It  must  have 

25* 


388  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

been  most  difficult  to  convey  the  dead  through  such  a  narrow 
channel,  and  if  the  cross  were  considered  worthy  of  so  much 
work,  why  should  there  not  have  been  a  proper  way  to  get 
into  it,  unless  it  was  to  hide  away  the  spirit  of  the  dead, 
and  prevent  his  having  future  egress  to  annoy  the  living. 
The  portals  to  the  temples  and  palaces  are  beautiful,  but 
the  entrances  to  the  tombs  terrible. 

Professor  Saville,  summarizing  in  a  general  way  as  the 
results  of  his  explorations,  has  brought  the  following  facts  to 
light  : — 

Funeral  urns  were  generally  placed  in  series  of  five  in 
front  of  the  tombs,  on  the  roof,  or  fastened  into  the  fa9ade. 

These  vaults  are  properly  ossuaries  or  places  where  the 
bones  of  the  dead  were  deposited.  Tombs  exist  in  Xoxo 
outside  of  the  burial  mounds.  House  sites  may  be  looked 
for  in  the  vicinity  of  the  main  group.  The  absence  of 
stone  implements  is  notable,  only  a  single  tiny  arrow-point 
and  two  celts  being  found. 

The  mortuary  custom  of  painting  the  bones  red,  the 
placing  of  food  and  incense  in  the  tomb,  the  interment  of 
decapitated  heads,  the  sparsity  of  personal  ornaments  buried 
with  the  dead,  and  the  absence  of  decorated  vessels  in  the 
vaults,  are  features  brought  out  by  his  explorations. 

The  custom  of  filing  and  inlaying  the  teeth  was  prac- 
tised, and  the  use  of  hematite  as  an  inlay  was  found  for  the 
first  time.  This  ancient  custom  can  now  be  traced  from  the 
region  of  Arizona  to  Southern  Central  America. 

The  terra-cotta  tubing  found  in  a  mound  may  perhaps  be 
explained  as  serving  some  mythological  purpose — perhaps 
to  form  an  outlet  for  the  escape  of  the  shade  of  the  dead. 
This  explanation,  however,  is  not  altogether  satisfactory, 
and  further  excavation  in  this  region  is  needed  to  shed  light 
on  its  significance. 

The  great  importance  attached  to  mortuary  rites  is  shown 
by    the    elaborately    constructed    tombs    containing    mural 


^^< 


Exterior  of  Milla  "lave. 


Interior  of  Mitla  siiase. 


[  To  face  page  388. 


ANCIENT  RUINS   OF  MIT  LA.  389 

paintings  and  hieroglyphic  inscriptions.  The  terra-cotta 
figures  and  the  funeral  urns  attest  the  very  high  attainment 
of  the  ancient  Zapotecs  in  the  art  of  modelling  earthen 
objects. 

The  Hall  of  Kings  was  being  restored  by  Seiior  D. 
Leopoldo  Batres.  He  was  doing  the  work  splendidly,  and 
really  having  the  stones  replaced  with  such  care  it  was  not 
possible  to  discover  which  of  them  had  just  been  put  back. 
Some  of  the  stones  that  he  was  using  in  his  repairs  he  had 
found  half  a  mile  away  in  the  village  ;  but  so  carefully  had 
he  fitted  each  into  its  own  place  that  no  one  could  have  told 
that  some  of  them  had  been  absent  for  centuries !  He  is 
working  for  Government.  Let  us  hope  that  means  the 
beginning  of  a  stricter  survey  and  preservation  of  the 
treasures  of  Mexico.  The  Professor  is  of  French  extrac- 
tion, and  by  means  of  that  tongue  we  became  excellent 
friends.  He  is  genial,  a  good  talker,  and  did  much 
towards  making  that  visit  to  Mitla  appear  like  a  fairy 
dream.  His  son  works  with  him,  and  is  as  keen  as  his 
father  on  things  archaeological. 

Another  young  man  who  is  deeply  interested,  and  has 
done  considerable  excavation,  is  Constantine  Richards,  one 
of  the  men  who  met  us  in  Tomellin  canon,  sent  by  the 
Governor  of  Oaxaca  to  translate  for,  and  help  us,  during 
the  week  we  were  the  guests  of  the  State.  His  father 
has  a  charming  house  in  Oaxaca,  where  we  enjoyed  a 
delightful  dinner  party. 

When  looking  back  and  comparing  Xochicalco  with 
Mitla,  it  was  interesting  to  note  the  differences  between 
the  respective  ruins.  The  fortress  of  Xochicalco  lay  amid 
far  more  beautiful  surroundings  than  the  other,  and  of  the 
two  its  position,  perched  on  the  top  of  a  hill,  was  the  more 
impressive.  It  was  bold  and  grand  ;  the  designs  of  gigantic 
Indians  in  war  plumes,  of  serpents  with  strange  heads  and 
long  twisted  tails,  and  eagles'  wings  outspread,  the  grandeur 


390  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

of  the  carvings,  and  the  splendid  workmanship,  were  all 
superior,  to  my  mind,  to  anything  at  Mitla.  The  ruins 
themselves,  though  not  nearly  so  large,  were  finer  in  design, 
and  their  situation  was  imposing.  Xochicalco  was  probably 
the  work  of  the  Aztecs,  those  wonderful  people  Cortes 
conquered. 

At  Mitla  the  work  appeared  more  modern,  and  yet  it  was 
probably  older  :  everything  exactly  matched  everything  else. 
There  was  a  courtyard  with  four  temples  all  one  storey  high, 
all  windowless,  and  each  with  three  doors.  The  designs 
upon  the  walls  were  smaller,  neater,  and  more  carefully 
executed  ;  but  the  position  of  the  Zapotecan  temples  in  the 
valley  was  poor  in  comparison  -with  that  of  the  Aztec 
fortress  on  the  hill.  Yet  Mitla  denoted  more  inhabitants — 
a  vast  population  in  fact,  who  possessed,  evidently,  a  greater 
knowledge  of  how  to  build,  who  even  possessed  drain-pipes 
of  clay  !  These  ruins  were  of  Zapotec  origin,  quite  another 
tribe  of  people,  with  dissimilar  ideas. 

Professor  Saville  suggested  we  should  visit  the  temples 
in  the  evening.  It  was  moonlight,  the  moon  was  full,  and 
shone  straight  over  our  heads — so  straight,  indeed,  that  we 
could  not  see  our  own  shadows.  This  effect  was  caused  by 
our  being  in  the  tropics  ;  the  sun  travels  twenty-three  and  a 
half  degrees  north  and  south  of  the  equator  in  the  course  of 
a  year,  and  it  is  consequently  overhead  at  mid-day  on  some 
day  of  the  year  at  all  places  between  latitudes  twenty-three 
and  a  half  degrees  north  and  south — that  is,  within  the  tropics. 
The  same  thing  happens  with  the  moon  ;  but  as  the  moon's 
path  is  inclined  to  that  of  the  sun,  at  an  angle  of  five  degrees, 
the  full  moon  appears  overhead  at  some  time  or  other  at  all 
places  between  latitudes  twenty-eight  and  a  half  degrees 
north  and  south.  This,  however,  does  not  happen  every 
year  as  it  does  in  the  case  of  the  sun.  We  were  fortunate 
enough  to  experience  the  curious  effect. 

There  was   something   very   wonderful    in    the    sight    of 


ANCIENT  RUINS   OF  MIT  LA.  391 

those  ruins  by  moonlight.  There  stood  those  three  great 
temple  fronts,  each  with  its  triple  portal,  and  flights  of  steps 
leading  to  the  courtyard  below.  Fancy  could  picture  the 
priests  of  yore,  issuing  forth  on  just  such  a  night,  followed 
by  their  acolytes  and  choristers,  and  in  solemn  procession 
descending  those  steps  to  the  scent  of  the  wafted  incense, 
made  from  copal,  such  as  is  used  in  the  churches  of  Mexico 
to-day,  and  accompanied  by  the  chant  of  human  voices. 
We  seemed  to  see  them  crossing  that  great  square  court, 
pausing  finally  before  a  sacrificial  stone,  similar  to  that 
which  is  now  in  the  Mexican  Museum  ;  we  saw  the  human 
victim  led  forth,  bound  and  fettered,  and  then ! 

We  could  picture  the  subsequent  banquet  on  human  flesh 
in  the  Hall  of  Kings,  the  revelry  of  barbaric  wealth  and 
magnificence. 

In  the  solitude  of  those  ruined  temples  and  palaces  in 
that  silent  valley,  we  seemed  to  see  the  triumphal  dance  of 
the  Indians  as  they  capered  around  the  wretched  prisoners 
of  war,  always  offered  up  in  sacrifice.  We  could  picture 
their  feathered  heads  and  jewels,  their  breast-plates  of 
gold,  and  weapons  of  war,  such  as  are  depicted  in  the 
tiny  scrap  of  painting  which  yet  remains  on  one  of  the 
walls. 

Only  two  or  three  years  since,  many  of  those  paintings 
still  existed,  but  the  application  of  wet  sponges  for  the 
benefit  of  some  American  tourists,  and  the  picking  off  of 
bits  here  and  there  for  the  amusement  of  others,  have 
effectually  destroyed  treasures  that  can  never  be  replaced, 
and,  too  late,  the  Government  has  awakened  to  the  duty  of 
protecting  what  is  left. 

The  old  MSS.  were  painted  on  cotton  cloth,  prepared 
skins,  the  leaf  of  the  aloe,  or  a  composition  of  silk  and  gum. 
It  is  a  collection  of  these  ancient  writings  that  Lord 
Kingsborough  reproduced  in  his  wonderful  work  on 
Mexico.       The    pictures   give    some  idea  of  the  gorgeous 


392  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

colouring  of  those  days,  the  fantastic  dress  of  the   Indians, 
and  the  wealth  and  splendour  that  rivalled  ancient  Rome. 

Yes,  we  seemed  to  see  it  all  in  the  moonlight.  We  could 
almost  hear  the  cry  of  the  victims  whose  blood  was  poured 
out  on  that  central  stone,  ere  their  bodies  were  taken  behind 
the  temples  to  the  great  banqueting  halls  for  the  subsequent 
feast.  We  could  picture  that  feast  of  human  flesh,  in  which 
women,  alas !  joined — for  women  were  well  treated  in  those 
days,  and  shared  all  the  joys  (?)  of  their  husbands  ;  they 
were  not  shut  up  in  any  way.  On  the  contrary,  they  were 
as  free  and  independent  as  the  Zapotec  women  of  the 
Isthmus  of  Tehuantepec  are  to-day.  Polygamy,  though 
permitted,  was  only  practised  among  the  wealthier  classes. 

According  to  Professor  Marshall  Saville  the  first  mention 
of  Mitla  occurs  in  the  Post  Columbian  Nahuatl  Book,  known 
as  the  Codex  Telleriano  Remensis,  under  the  account  of 
what  transpired  during  the  reign  of  Ahuistotl,  the  Aztec 
monarch  who  preceded  Montezuma. 

Fray  Diego  Duran  places  the  subjugation  of  Mitla 
during  the  reign  of  Montezuma  the  First,  and  the  majority 
of  orio^inal  sources  ao-ree  in  datino-  that  reio^n  between  the 
years  1440  and  1454  a.d. 

Father  Martin  de  Valencia,  a  Spanish  priest,  passed 
through  Mitla  in  1537,  and  describes  a  temple  in  ruins 
containing  columns.  But  all  this  is  modern  writing  ;  the 
temples  had  then  been  destroyed — who  can  tell  what  they 
were  like  centuries  previously  ? 

The  village  of  Mitla  is  almost  as  interesting  as  are  the 
ruins  themselves.  Here  dwell  the  descendants  of  the  very 
people  who  built  those  great  temples.  They  are  still  most 
primitive  in  their  manners  and  customs,  chiefly  employed  in 
cultivating  the  soil  and  tending  cattle  and  sheep.  Tiny 
huts  made  of  bamboo  form  these  Zapotecan  dwellings, 
which  contain  but  one  small  room,  eight  feet  by  twelve 
being  the  average  size.     If  these  Indians  are  rich  they  build 


^lU.,    "* ,. 


ANCIENT  RUINS   OF  MIT  LA.  393 

a  kitchen,  just  a  tiny  place  shaped  like  a  tent,  on  much  the 
same  principle  as  their  hut,  and  here  the  wife  makes  her 
tortillas  or  does  her  washing. 

One  family  we  visited  was  quite  remarkable.  The  mother, 
presumably  about  thirty-five,  was  a  well-preserved,  hand- 
some woman  for  her  age  ;  and  the  eldest  daughter,  a  girl  of 
seventeen,  could  but  be  considered  lovely.  She  was  very 
small,  five  feet  at  most — as  are  all  the  Indians — and  dark- 
skinned,  her  complexion  being  of  a  rich  nut-brown  hue. 
She  was  attired  in  a  sort  of  chemise  low  In  the  neck  and 
short  in  the  sleeves,  which  showed  a  perfectly  modelled  bust ; 
round  her  throat  she  wore  red  coral  for  luck  and  some 
curiouslv-coloured  beads.  Her  lono:  black  hair  huno-  in  two 
plaits,  into  which  red  braid  had  been  twisted,  so  that  what 
fell  below  her  waist  was  really  a  tassel  of  braid.  The  mother, 
on  the  other  hand,  wore  her  plaits  coiled  round  her  head, 
which,  as  they  were  interwoven  with  bright  green  wool,  had 
the  effect  of  a  laurel  wreath. 

Both  mother  and  daughter  wore  the  long  strip  of  skirt 
round  the  body,  and  as  they  had  just  finished  weaving  a 
new  one,  they  exhibited  it  with  pride.  The  coarse  black 
material  was  woven  in  three  strips,  which  were  stitched 
together  with  coloured  wool  ;  it  was  nearly  a  yard  wide,  its 
length  about  eight  feet.  It  had  no  shape.  The  girl  poked 
one  end  between  her  legs,  quickly  bound  it  round  and  caught 
it  in  at  the  waist  by  a  sash-band.  This  is  the  usual  skirt  ; 
but  made  in  a  shorter  length  it  does  not  always  fold  over  so 
well,  hence  one  often  sees  the  bare  leg  of  an  Indian  woman. 
They  wear  nothing  on  their  feet. 

A  small  personage  of  about  two — the  youngest  of  the 
woman's  five  children — was  dressed  in  the  quaint  old  fashion 
of  the  babies  of  the  district.  He  had  on  long  white  trousers 
and  a  coat  like  that  of  his  father  ;  indeed,  boys  and  girls,  as 
soon  as  they  can  stand,  are  dressed  exactly  like  their  elders. 

He  was  told  to  say  "How  do  you  do  ?  "  to  the  lady. 


394  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

I  gave  him  my  hand,  and  the  tiny  creature  kissed  it  ! 
His  Httle  lips  and  hands  were  so  cold  that  kiss  really  gave 
me  a  shock  ;  but  I  suppose  Indian  blood  must  be  thin  and 
poor,  for  I  never  shook  hands  with  any  native  who  felt  warm 
— they  always  seem  to  be  cold  and  clammy.  To  my  mind 
there  is  something  almost  uncanny  about  them — snake  or 
fish  like — although  they  are  beautiful  in  shape  and  remark- 
able in  carriage.  They  are  poorly  clad,  and  yet  they  surely 
cannot  feel  the  cold  as  we  do,  or  presumably  they  would 
alter  matters  and  do  something  to  warm  up  that  chill,  thin 
blood  of  theirs,  and  set  it  circulating  more  freely  through 
their  veins. 

At  another  wigwam  they  were  making  rope  ;  a  boy  with 
a  stick  was  turning  one  end  round  and  round  with  both 
hands  to  give  the  rope  a  twist.  A  man  was  standing  thirty 
feet  away,  and  as  the  boy  twirled  the  rope,  he  added  on  bit 
by  bit  shreds  of  vegetable  fibre,  and  so  dexterous  was  this 
gentleman  that  he  quickly  added  a  foot,  and  beautifully  and 
securely  woven  it  was,  too.  Near  him  were  a  couple  of 
women  squatting  on  the  foreground  ;  one  of  them  was 
spinning  her  wool,  which  she  had  dyed  herself  with  vege- 
table dyes  ;  she  had  a  small  earthenware  bowl,  and  in  it 
stood  her  bobbin — about  eight  inches  high — which  she  set 
spinning  by  a  touch  of  her  fingers,  when  it  just  continued 
the  movement  like  an  everlasting  top,  while  she  spun  her 
wool  off  the  bobbin. 

Her  mother,  close  at  hand,  was  "  carding  "  the  wool  ; 
she  was  doing  it  rapidly  on  the  most  simple  wooden  struc- 
ture, chanting  a  little  dirge  to  herself  the  while.  Many  of 
these  aboriginal  modes  of  doing  work  exist  in  the  Mitla 
valley  to-day.  What  simple  folk  they  are  !  They  live  on 
next  to  nothing,  their  homes  are  nothing,  they  possess 
almost  nothing,  they  know  nothing  ;  they  are  but  little 
removed  from  mere  animal  existence,  and  yet  they  appear 
quite  contented  and  happy  ! 


ANCIENT  RUINS   OF  MIT  LA.  395 

Would  we  change  with  them  ?  No !  Only  those  who 
have  experienced  the  sorrows  and  turmoils  of  life  are  able 
to  appreciate  its  pleasures  and  its  joys  !  Adversity  is  a  fine 
school  for  the  mind. 

Each  hut  had  its  tiny  altar  ;  some  great  and  wonderful 
oleograph  of  the  Virgin  Mary  formed  the  centre-piece  ; 
fresh  floral  offerings  in  blue  or  red  china  vases  stood  below, 
and  a  tiny  lamp  hung  before  the  picture,  to  be  lighted  on 
all  feast  days.  These  poor  folk  are  most  devout,  but  their 
religion  is  tempered  by  much  fear  ;  they  believe  in  devils 
and  hell  fire  and  other  terrible  things  ;  so  that  though  their 
lives  seem  to  be  happy  in  the  present,  their  dreams  of  the 
future  must  be  weird  indeed. 

The  entire  village  retires  to  bed  about  7.30  p.m., 
when  the  stars  come  out.  The  women  begin  to  light  their 
cupful  of  fire  about  5.30  a.m.,  in  order  to  make  their  tor- 
tillas with  the  break  of  day.  As  one  rides  through  such  a 
village  in  the  early  morning,  a  thin  veil  of  smoke  rises  from 
the  little  homes,  and  the  glint  of  the  flame  flickers  through 
the  bamboo  walls. 

Our  cavalcade  was  ready,  and  we  started  soon  after  seven 
a.m.  one  morning  for  Upper  Guiaroo,  where  we  wished  to 
see  an  ancient  fortress  and  a  Cruciform  Cross  up  in  the 
mountains.  The  first  part  of  the  road  was  good  ;  but  as 
we  began  to  ascend  the  mountain  the  path  narrowed  con- 
siderably, and  often  the  horses  could  barely  secure  foothold  ; 
Mexican  ponies,  however,  are  like  cats,  and  they  always 
manage  to  get  along  somehow. 

Every  shrub  in  Mexico  appears  to  bear  a  thorn  ;  not  a 
little  thorn,  oh  dear  no !  The  thorns  are  one  and  even 
three  inches  long,  and  as  stiff  as  the  blade  of  a  pen-knife  ; 
certainly  our  ride  that  day  proved  this  fact  to  several 
members  of  our  party  by  rending  their  garments. 

The  path  had  been  made  a  few  months  before  by  Professor 
Saville  and  his  workmen,  when  they  were  excavating  at  the 


396  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

summit  ;  and  though  it  was  only  a  few  months,  some  of  his 
excavations — such  as  holes  used  for  sacrificial  fires — were 
already  covered  by  greenery,  so  great  is  the  rapidity  of 
vegetable  growth  in  the  tropical  parts  of  Mexico. 

Up,  up  we  went — my  riding  astride  affording  amusement 
to  some  of  the  party — until  we  suddenly  found  ourselves 
close  to  the  ancient  fortress.  The  walls  were  of  natural 
stones — adobes  (the  native  sun-burnt  brick)  piled  one  upon 
the  other,  and  several  distinct  courts  and  chambers  were 
visible. 

What  a  splendid  position  it  was  for  a  fort  !  We  could  see 
for  miles  and  miles  right  over  that  wide  valley,  and  across 
some  of  the  smaller  chains  of  hills  to  the  more  mountainous 
regions  beyond.  Deep  caverns  or  barrancas  surrounded  us 
on  all  sides,  while  opposite  lay  a  typical  zig-zag  mountain 
path  leading  to  the  Isthmus  of  Tehuan tepee. 

"  It  is  a  five  days'  ride  from  here,"  was  the  reply  to  my 
question  as  to  the  distance.  "  The  route  lies  right  through 
the  mountains  ;  but  there  is  barely  one  village  on  the  way, 
merely  a  reed  hut  for  shelter,  and  tortillas  the  only  food. 

I  felt  sorely  tempted  to  undertake  that  ride  through  the 
wild  mountains  ;  but  as  no  one  else  seemed  anxious  to  face 
the  discomforts,  it  would,  of  course,  have  been  little  short 
of  madness  to  attempt  such  a  journey  without  a  properly- 
arranged  escort. 

Leaving  our  horses  with  their  strange  and  wondrous 
trappings  at  the  fortress,  we  walked  to  the  real  summit  of 
the  hill  to  see  the  great  Cruciform  Cross.  It  may  here  be 
remarked  that  often  quite  a  poor  peon  has  most  wonderful 
horse  furniture  ;  he  sometimes  possesses  a  saddle  and  bridle 
worth  ^"5  in  English  gold,  and  yet  the  horse  he  rides 
would  not  be  valued  at  one-tenth  of  the  embroidered  leather 
he  carries. 

The  cross  was  wonderful  ;  in  the  first  place  it  had  no 
roof,  and  therefore  we  could   see   it  in  all  the  perfection  of 


<  **  "' 


■•a! 


;i 


<*•- 


•y  ~ 
?,1 


■<, 


"^< 


ANCIENT  RUINS   OF  MIT  LA.  397 

daylight.  It  had  evidently  been  made,  like  the  others, 
for  the  tomb  of  some  great  priest  or  king  ;  but  accord- 
ing to  Professor  Saville — who  cleared  it  out  in  1900 — had 
never  been  completed.  It  had  not  been  closed  in,  and 
lying  close  at  hand  were  several  massive  stones  hewn  ready 
for  use,  with  round  holes  in  them,  showing  they  had  been 
'*  pinched  "  in  place  by  means  of  holes  at  the  back.  The 
perfect  joining  of  these  stones  shows  thorough  mastery  of 
the  mason's  art. 

The  carving  of  the  grecques  was  beautiful,  so  clean  and 
clearly  cut,  and  yet  what  could  these  ancient  people  have 
done  their  chiselling  with  ?  No  steel  or  iron  tools  have  been 
found,  though  the  discovery  of  obsidian  blades  show  that 
these  were  in  use.  Rough  stone  implements  like  stunted 
arrow-heads  with  sharp  points  have  been  found,  and  with 
these  doubtless  some  of  the  carving  was  accomplished. 

One  of  the  patterns  on  the  walls  was  a  cross  oftentimes 
repeated,  that  self-same  equal-sided  cross  which  appears 
again  and  again  all  over  the  world.  There  are  fifteen  dif- 
ferent and  distinct  designs  of  grecques  at  Mitla,  and  although 
sometimes  the  pattern  is  made  up  by  small  pieces  of  stone 
arranged  mosaic  fashion  together,  yet  the  generality  are 
carved  in  the  solid  blocks.  No  structures  of  a  similar  nature 
are  known  in  any  other  part  of  Mexico  or  Central  America, 
and  these  five  are  probably  the  most  important  burial 
chambers  in  the  new  world,  owing  both  to  their  size  and 
the  beauty  and  preservation  of  the  stone  work. 

The  walls  of  this  cross — which  is  an  absolutely  complete 
+  ,  all  four  sides  being  alike — were  about  eight  feet  high 
and  at  least  thirty-two  feet  long  in  the  arms.  Here  again 
the  grecques  were  carved  and  not  mosaic,  and  evidently  the 
whole  had  originally  been  painted  white,  the  patterns  being 
outlined  in  red,  as  the  colour  still  remains  in  places. 

There  are  three  designs  in  these  carvings,  which  com- 
plete the  fifteen  designs  found  at  Mitla. 


398  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

The  stones  had  been  brought  from  a  quarry  about  a 
mile  away,  where  some  still  remain,  and  must  have  been 
carried  this  distance  over  a  mountain  top,  down  a  deep 
barranca,  and  up  a  steep  incline  !  Several  large  stones  are 
still  to  be  found  at  these  quarries  ;  others  are  lying  on  the 
road  between  the  quarries  and  Mitla,  thus  showing  that  the 
work  was  interrupted  before  completion.  It  is  supposed 
that  these  enormous  masses  were  moved  by  means  of  rollers 
and  ropes  ;  but  on  viewing  the  steep  sides  of  the  barrancas 
one  marvels  how  they  were  ever  pulled  up  at  all. 

The  stones,  though  probably  dressed  at  the  quarries, 
were  undoubtedly  carved  after  being  placed  in  position. 

The  lines  of  the  crosses  are  always  exactly  five  degrees 
east  and  north,  and  there  seems  to  be  no  doubt  but  that 
these  people  worshipped  the  North  Star. 

The  Mayas  peopled  Yutacan,  and  viay  have  built  Mitla, 
which  is  however  more  commonly  considered  the  work  of 
the  Zapotecs,  because,  although  the  former  used  arches  in 
their  buildings,  there  are  only  square  doors  in  Mitla. 
William  Holmes,  when  writing  of  these  Mayas,  says  : — 

"  The  Maya  Race. — At  the  period  of  conquest  the  Maya  tribes  occupying  the  penin- 
sula of  Yucatan,  and  considerable  portions  of  neighbouring  territory  to  the  south  and 
west,  are  said  to  have  comprised  in  the  neighbourhood  of  2,000,000  souls.  It  is 
said  that  some  bands  have  never  been  fully  conquered  to-day,  and  they  practically 
substantiate  the  claim  by  holding  the  temples  of  their  fathers  by  force  of  arms,  defying 
all  comers,  whether  white  or  red. 

"  Physically  the  Mayas  are  short,  sturdy,  and  dark,  possessing  generally  the  typical 
characteristics  of  the  red  race.  Their  mental  equipment  is  conceded  to  be  of  a  high 
order  as  compared  with  other  native  stocks.  Their  origin  is  largely  a  matter  of  con- 
jecture. One  account  (Brinton,  D.G.,  American  Hero  Myths,  p.  145)  connects  them 
with  the  history  of  the  god  and  culture-hero  Itzamna,  and  derives  an  important  element 
or  division  of  the  race  from  the  east,  where  they  are  said  to  have  come  across — or 
rather  through — the  ocean,  thus  forcibly  recalling  the  story  of  Atlantis.  The  more 
probable  derivation  is,  however,  from  the  west,  as  tradition,  myth,  art,  and  geographical 
conditions  point  in  this  direction  more  decidedly  than  in  any  other.  It  appears  that 
there  are  few  ties  of  language  with  the  Aztecs  or  other  Mexican  peoples,  though  there 
are  numerous  and  striking  analogies  in  arts  and  customs,  and  it  is  not  improbable  that 
in  the  course  of  their  history  the  Mayas  have  come  into  close  contact  with  the  great 
tribes  of  the  Plateau  of  Mexico.  Indeed,  all  may  have  had  a  common  origin  to  the 
north  in  Mexico,  or  even  beyond  the  Rio  Grande. 

"In  the  culture  scale  this  people  stood  at   the  head   of  the  American  tribes.     They 


ANCIENT  RUINS    OF  MIT  LA.  399 

were  still,  properly  speaking,  barbarians,  but  in  several  respects  seemed  to  be  on  the 
very  threshold  of  civilisation.  Their  status  may  be  compared  to  that  of  the  Greeks  and 
Eg}'ptians  immediately  preceding  the  dawn  of  history,  and  we  may  assume  that  they 
were,  as  measured  by  Aryan  rates  of  progress,  perhaps  not  more  than  a  few  thousand 
years  behind  the  foremost  nations  of  the  world  in  the  great  procession  of  races  from 
savagery  toward  enlightenment.  It  is  certain  that  they  were  already  enjoying  a  rude 
system  of  historic  records,  and  were  the  only  nation  on  the  western  continent  that  had 
made  any  considerable  headway  in  the  development  of  a  phonetic  system  of  writing. 
Their  hieroglyphics  occupy  a  place,  not  yet  well  defined,  somewhere  along  the  course 
of  progress  from  pictograph  to  letter,  and  are  consequently  difficult  of  interpretation. 
There  is  no  doubt,  however,  that  an  age  of  literature  was  actually,  though  slowly, 
dawning  in  America  when  the  shock  of  conquest  came." 

It  was  wonderful  to  pause  and  think  of  all  these  things  as 
we  sat  on  those  monster  stones  forming  the  cruciform 
chamber.  Idly  I  poked  about  with  my  riding- whip,  till 
something  appeared,  and  spoke  to  me,  as  it  were,  from  the 
past. 

I  did  not  dig  nor  delve  ;  but  I  stumbled  across  what  are 
to  me  a  couple  of  treasures — a  little  bit  of  brown  pottery 
and  a  thin  black  obsidian  blade  (volcanic  glass)  which  had 
formerly  been  used  as  a  knife.  Triumphantly  I  bore  away 
my  trophies,  two  little  treasures  revealed  to  me  from  a  long 
ago  past,  feeling,  indeed,  an  archaeologist  of  great  import  to 
have  found  such  trophies  at  far-away  Mitla !  A  couple  of 
pieces  of  old  money  were  given  to  me  subsequently  ;  they 
look  like  flat  copper  picks — six  inches  from  tip  to  tip — and 
the  handle — two  inches  wide — is  equally  long.  Such  large 
coins  remind  one  of  the  ancient  money  of  China  or  Finland. 
But  among  my  little  collection  four  small  gods  forming  part 
of  a  necklace,  and  the  head  of  an  idol,  with  the  heavy  eyes, 
thick  lips,  wide  nose  and  side  curl  of  Egypt  seem  to  me 
most  precious. 

On  our  return  journey  we  stopped  at  an  hacienda  where 
there  is  another  cruciform  cross,  which  has  been  known 
since  the  days  of  the  Spaniards.  The  farm  house  is  now 
built  above  it.  In  the  courtyard  was  the  open  threshing- 
floor  ;  these  concrete  threshing  spaces  may  be  seen  all  over 
Mexico — they  are   round  like  a  circus,  have  a  stone  curbing 


400  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

and  a  cemented  floor,  and  therein  trudge  the  horses  or 
mules  as  they  do  when  working  at  the  ore  in  Pachuca. 

The  Indian  corn  is  thrown  on  the  floor,  and  mules  march 
solemnly  round  and  round  to  thresh  off  the  husks.  It  may 
be  well  here  to  mention  one  of  the  chief  uses  of  these 
husks.  They  are  not  only  utilised  for  fodder,  but  as  a  case 
for  the  food  of  man  ;  the  famous  tamales  of  Mexico  (minced 
meat  or  vegetable  concoctions)  are  enclosed  in  them. 
The  cob  from  which  the  husk  has  been  removed  is  still 
generally  manipulated  by  hand,  the  beads  of  maize  being 
scraped  down  inch  by  inch. 

The  primitive  people  in  the  Mitla  valley  are  probably 
the  direct  descendants  of  that  great  race  who  raised  those 
wonderful  temples.  A  handful  of  villagers  is  all  that  is 
now  left  of  the  vast  population  which  formerly  filled  this 
wide  valley. 

How  beautiful  everything  seemed,  how  picturesque  the 
surroundmgs,  and  how  interesting  my  companions,  for  was 
I  not  accompanied  by  the  three  archaeologists  to  whom  all 
the  excavations  of  late  years  are  due.  How  gloricjs  the 
flowers,  the  singing  birds,  the  dear  little  humming-birds  of 
brighter  plumage,  the  gorgeously-hued  butterflies — it  was 
all  so  lovely,  so  sleepy,  so  strange. 

Little  did  I  dream  of  the  wicked  sprite  laughing  at  my 
joy,  which  was  so  shortly  to  be  turned  to  tears.  Life  and 
happiness  were  soon  to  be  followed  by  pain  and  well  nigh 
death  ! 


iVncient  lorlress,  Upper  Guijiroo,  Mitla. 


]5unung  clVigics  of  Judas,  in  Mexico  City,  on  Easier  SaUirday. 
To  face  pas^e  401.] 


401 


CHAPTER  XXIV. 

RIVERS     IN     THE     TROPICS. 

New  Orleans  is  the  great  centre  of  Carnival  festivities  in 
the  New  World,  for  there  the  gaieties  exceed  those  in  Italy 
or  the  Riviera,  but  in  Mexico  City,  Carnival  time,  is  now  but 
a  poor  affair.  A  few  second-class  balls  on  Sunday  nights, 
attended  by  the  "half-world,"  as  one  paper  announced,  a 
few  tawdry  dresses  on  the  paseo,  and  some  students  arrayed 
in  old  Spanish  costumes,  made  but  a  poor  representation 
of  the  rejoicings  of  old. 

On  Ash  Wednesday,  however,  every  good  Catholic  wore 
black,  and  went  to  mass  for  the  first  daily  attendance  at 
forty  consecutive  services,  and  every  good  Catholic  also  had 
a  cross  marked  upon  his  forehead  in  ashes  by  the  priest. 
Some  of  the  older  people  refuse  to  wash  off  this  cross,  and 
therefore  all  day  may  be  seen  walking  about  the  streets 
with  a  dusky  shadow  across  their  brows. 

On  the  Saturday  morning  before  Easter  Sunday  all  this 
"humiliation"  ends.  It  is  a  day  of  gladness,  when  the  sin 
of  Judas  is  punished.  At  ten  o'clock  in^the  morning  the 
bells  of  the  Cathedral  and  every  other  church  ring  out  La 
Gloria,  and  immediately  numerous  effigies  of  the  traitor  are 
burnt. 

Now  this^  strange  and  wonderful  custom  is,  so  far  as 
I  know,  peculiar  to  Mexico.  As  they  dressed  up  clowns, 
ballet  dancers,"  and  odd  figures  in  paper  for  the  pifiatas, 
so   they    dress    up  yet    more   wonderful    representations    of 

26 


402  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

Judas.  They  make  a  hideous  paper  doll,  two,  ,  three, 
four,  or  even  five  feet  high,  inside  they  put  bread  for  the 
poor,  or — in  richer  districts — coins,  they  fill  the  puppet 
with  paper,  pasteboard  or  straw,  and  hang  him  from  a 
cord  across  the  street  ;  any  street,  every  street,  garden 
or  square  has  its  Judas,  and  while  La  Gloria  peals 
forth  each  is  ignited.  The  poor  rush  forward  and  scramble 
for  the  coins  or  bread,  and  altogether  "  have  a  fine  time !  " 

If  any  particular  man  be  specially  unpopular  in  a 
village,   he  often  figures   as  Judas,   and  is  burnt  in  effigy. 

Until  1898  the  Jockey  Club  in  the  City  had  the  most 
famous  representations  of  that  traitor.  The  club  is  rich, 
and  each  of  the  three  figures  cost  from  two  to  three 
hundred  dollars.  One  would  be  on  horseback,  the  horse 
fashioned  in  pasteboard,  but  the  accessories  a  real  Mexican 
embroidered  saddle,  bridle  and  stirrups.  The  mock  Judas 
wore  real  trousers,  tight  and  close  fitting,  with  silver 
coins  down  his  legs,  and  a  valuable  hat.  Inside  were 
rockets,  and  when  the  thing  was  lighted  the  arms  and  legs 
jumped,  much  to  the  delight  of  the  pelados  (populace) 
below,  who  were  sometimes  almost  crushed  to  death  in 
their  endeavours  to  get  a  bit  of  the  Judas.  Free  fights 
ensued,  the  trousers  were  torn  shred  by  shred  to  get  at  a 
coin,  until  finally  the  police,  being  unable  to  cope  with 
the  mob,  intimated  to  the  Jockey  Club  that  the  authorities 
hoped  they  would  discontinue  such  a  dangerous  custom. 
The  Jockey  Club,  therefore,  no  longer  exhibits  these 
effigies,  which  nevertheless  are  still  displayed  at  every 
corner  of  the  town,  the  people  hugely  enjoying  such 
gruesome  spectacles. 

I  saw  very  little  of  the  Carnival,  for  I  was  ill. 

PuncJi  s  advice  to  persons  about  to  marry  applies  to 
those  who  think  of  Qrettinof  ill  in  Mexico.      Don't  ! 

That  is  supposing  you  value  your  life,  or  unless  your 
nerves  are  of  cast  iron  or  steel,  Don't. 


R ITERS   IN   THE    TROPICS.  403 

It  was  a  funny  experience  all  the  same,  and  I  can  afford 
to  laugh  at  the  memory  now,  but  at  the  time,  well — I  could 
only  repeat  PimcJis  wise  counsel.  Don't. 

On  returning  from  one  of  my  various  expeditions  to  the 
tropics — the  one  and  only  occasion  on  which  I  was  stupid 
enough  to  ride  without  riding-boots — one  of  my  knees 
looked  red  and  swollen  ;  a  few  hours  later  the  other  knee 
followed  suit,  whilst  various  red  patches  appeared  on  my 
legs,  extending  to  the  ankle,  which  soon  became  so  horribly 
painful,  that  when  I  stood  up  I  could  have  shrieked  aloud, 
whereupon  I  sought  a  doctor. 

"  Poisoned  bites,"  remarked  that  sapient  individual. 
"  Got  in  the  tropics.  Eh  !  Nine  of  them  !  You  must 
go  straight  to  bed  and  have  a  nurse." 

As  I  was  crawling  back  to  my  room,  I  met  a  well-known 
bishop  from  New  York,  whom  I  had  seen  several  times, 
and  after  enquiring  the  cause  of  my  slow  and  languid 
movements,  he  added  : 

"  I  am  feeling  ill  myself  ;  this  elevation  is  very  trying, 
and  my  heart  is  troubling  me  a  good  deal." 

A  few  more  words,  and  he  passed  on  into  his  room,  and 
I  into  mine,  which  chanced  to  be  the  next. 

I  did  not  have  a  nurse,  because  in  Mexico  they  are 
difficult  to  get,  and  therefore,  in  an  hotel,  are  looked  upon 
with  such  awe  it  is  almost  impossible  to  arrange  for  one  ; 
but  I  stayed  partly  in  bed,  and  partly  in  a  cane  arm-chair, 
with  my  feet  on  another — a  comfortable  sofa  is  unknown  in 
a  hotel — and  tried  to  bear  complacently  the  throbbing  pain 
of  those  nine  bites,  now  swollen  into  two  solid  masses !  I 
could  hardly  crawl  to  the  bell,  and  when  I  did,  no  one  came, 
at  least,  not  for  half  an  hour  or  so,  and  then  only  a  viozo 
(man),  for  women  servants  are  non-existent  in  Mexican 
hotels.  I  ordered  "hot  chicken,"  which  arrived  in  a  tepid 
condition,  the  salt  was  forgotten,  and  the  potatoes  were  cold. 
Altogether  life  did  not  look  cheerful. 

26* 


404 


MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 


The  whole  of  the  following  day  people  were  rushing  in 
and  out  of  the  next  room,  which  was  occupied  by  the 
learned  divine.  The  walls  were  thin,  and  I  could  hear 
distinctly  all  that  passed.  There  was  soon  no  more  to 
hear,  for  alas  !  that  evening  the  poor  gentleman  died,  just 
twenty-eight  hours  after  we  had  talked  on  the  balcony  ! 

The  event  came  as  an  awful  shock,  I  own,  and  when  all 
the  fuss  attendant  on  death  was  over — by  law  every  corpse 
has  to  be  buried  within  twenty-four  hours  in  Mexico — and 
they  locked  the  door  that  night,  there  seemed  something- 
horrible  in  the  intense  stillness  which  succeeded  to  all  the 
bustle  and  confusion.  Did  I  sleep  ?  No,  not  much,  the 
horror  of  my  plight,  the  pain  of  those  bites,  despite  the 
application  of  a  freezing  mixture  every  hour  to  my  lower 
limbs — my  own  temperature  being  somewhere  about 
104^  Fahr.  —  the  terrible,  terrible  loneliness  I  felt 
with  no  one  to  come  near  but  a  Spaniard,  who  smelt 
of  garlic  and  spoke  and  understood  nothing  but  his 
own  tongue — well,  I  could  only  again  say  with  Punch, 
"  DON'T!  " 

Many  of  my  English  and  American  friends  had  influenza 
at  the  time,  and  were  unable  to  call,  although  two  ladies 
were  most  thoughtful,  sleeping  in  my  sitting-room  at  night 
in  turn  when  I  was  at  my  worst  ;  others  sent  or  brought 
me  fresh  butter — a  real  luxury — and  little  rolls,  books, 
fruit  and  flowers.  But  kind  as  my  Mexican  friends  were 
to  me,  hospitable  and  considerate  as  I  invariably  found 
them,  they  somehow  never  seemed  to  fully  realise  the 
awfulness  of  my  fate.  They  left  cards  to  enquire,  or 
sent  flowers,  but  I  felt  utterly  wretched.  Tied  by  the  leg 
— by  two  legs,  in  fact — unable  to  stand  for  a  second, 
practically  alone  in  a  great  gaunt  hotel,  where  the  food  had 
to  be  brought  from  a  restaurant  several  minutes'  walk  away 
— although  in  the  same  building — and  was  consequently 
cold    and    unappetising,    the    whole    thing    seemed    simply 


RIVERS   IN   THE    TROPICS.  405 

horrible !  For  fifteen  days  I  suffered  agonies  from  those 
bites,  and  for  ten  of  those  terrible  days  I  never  put  my 
foot  out  of  bed  ;  it  was  by  a  miracle  I  escaped  more  severe 
blood-poisoning. 

Freezing  mixture  and  whisky  was  my  prescription,  and 
I  who  had  rarely  tasted  whisky,  was  expected  to  drink  it 
by  the  tumbler,  as  an  antidote  to  the  poison. 

A  guardian  angel  came  to  me  at  last,  however,  in  the 
guise  of  an  old  friend,  Lady  Pearson,  just  arrived  from 
England  with  Sir  Weetman,  who  was  on  an  inspection  trip 
of  his  work  in  Mexico.  She  bore  me  off  to  her  lovely  house 
in  Alvarado  when  I  was  well  enough  to  be  moved.  I  was 
carried  upstairs  and  put  to  bed,  where  she  fed  me  with 
dainties  and  generally  looked  after  me.  No  words  can 
ever  sufficiently  thank  her  for  her  kindness  in  my  hour 
of  need  ;  the  comforts  of  a  home,  even  the  luxury  of  a 
good  bed  and  soft  pillows,  of  thin  cups  and  saucers,  and 
dainty  linen,  combined  to  quickly  set  me  on  the  road  to 
recovery. 

"  All's  well  that  ends  well,"  and  I  can  afford  to  laugh 
about  my  illness  now,  but  it  was  a  gruesome  experience, 
and  made  me  realise  the  madness  of  travelling  alone  so  far 
from  home.  Yet,  after  all,  I  had  already  been  over  six 
months  on  the  tramp,  had  slept  in  about  fifty  different 
beds,  had  spent  some  twenty  nights  in  railway  cars,  and 
travelled  thousands  of  miles,  with  never  a  day's  illness  ;  but 
until  I  reached  Mexico  City  I  had  practically  never  been 
in  a  hotel,  or  alone,  and  then — this  is  what  befell  me  ! 

If  any  reader  ever  have  a  friend,  or  should  hear  of  a 
foreigner  who  is  ill,  in  a  strange  land,  let  him  hasten  to 
his  side,  to  talk  to  him,  cheer  him  up,  to  perform  his  little 
commissions,  to  take  him  soup  or  jelly,  even  to  boil  the 
kettle  for  a  hot-water  bottle,  to  do  anything,  in  fact,  rather 
than  leave  a  sick  man  or  woman  alone  in  an  unknown 
hotel,  in  a  land  far  from  his  own. 


4o6  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

If  my  disease  were  not  caused  by  tropical  bites — and 
there  was  some  little  doubt  about  the  matter — it  must  have 
been  due  to  poisoned  ivy.  This  latter  is  very  dangerous 
in  tropical  lands.  The  parasite  in  hot  climates  grows  rank, 
generally  in  damp  shady  barrancas,  where  it  spreads 
prolifically.  It  has  long,  thick,  dark-green  leaves,  and  is 
most  poisonous  when  in  bloom  ;  then  the  pollen  flies,  and 
any  one  may  be  poisoned  without  even  touching  the  plant, 
when  two  or  three  feet  away,  in  fact,  if  they  are  susceptible. 
Many  persons  are  susceptible,  even  among  the  Indians, 
who  live  in  constant  dread  of  approaching  the  creeper, 
while  others  appear  to  enjoy  immunity  from  its  effects. 
Natives  dread  the  devil,  yellow  fever,  and  poisonous  ivy  ! 

The  poison  raises  large  lumps,  red  and  swollen  like  bites  ; 
pus  forms,  and  a  kind  of  blood  poisoning,  attended  by 
pain  and  danger,  sets  in. 

While  I  was  still  ill,  although  on  the  high  road  to 
recovery,  Sir  Weetman  and  Lady  Pearson  started  for  the 
Isthmus  of  Tehuantepec.  She  and  her  daughter  returned 
to  Mexico  about  three  weeks  later  ;  but  he  and  his  son, 
managers,  engineers  and  Members  of  the  Government 
remained  to  further  inspect  the  line  and  attend  to  business. 
I  had  unfortunately  missed  the  first  trip  across  the  Isthmus 
with  Lady  Pearson,  but  was  luckily  well  enough  to  meet 
the  rest  of  the  party  down  the  river,  and  see  the  new  railway. 
On  steamers  and  special  trains  it  is  not  necessary  to  walk, 
and  by  that  time  I  could  manage  to  crawl  about  again. 
The  ensuing  time  spent  on  a  deck  chair  on  those  wonderful 
rivers  soon  made  me  feel  stronsfer. 

The  Isthmus  Railway,  and  its  immense  possibilities,  its 
chance  of  revolutionising  the  carrying  trade  between  the 
East  and  West,  are  dealt  with  in  the  next  chapter. 

The  railway  line  to  Vera  Cruz  was  the  first  opened  in 
Mexico,  its  object  being  to  connect  the  capital  with  the 
coast.       Like   the    Inter-Oceanic,    this   route    runs   through 


RIVERS   IN   THE    TROPICS.  407 

some  of  the  chief  maguey  fields.  Train  loads  of  pulque 
are  brought  into  Mexico  every  morning,  five  hundred 
thousand  litres  being  drunk  daily  in  the  city  of  Mexico 
alone ! 

Mr.  Thomas  Braniff,  President  of  the  Mexican  Railway, 
kindly  lent  me  his  own  car,  and  after  being  seen  off 
by  several  friends,  I  travelled  to  Vera  Cruz  in  company 
with  Mr.  Colls,  who  had  been  for  several  years  in 
Mexico,  but  having  married  the  only  daughter  of  Edward 
Terry,  the  actor,  now  lives  in  England. 

It  is  a  splendid  journey.  The  line  is  often  on  a  four 
per  cent,  grade,  and  swings  round  endless  curves  as  it 
descends  some  ten  thousand  feet  to  Vera  Cruz.  The 
beautiful  part  begins  at  Esperanza,  and  from  thence  to 
Orizaba — famous  for  its  domes — it  is  perfectly  lovely. 
There  are  endless  tunnels  and  high  bridges,  and  so  sharply 
does  the  route  curve  that  the  coaches  have  to  lie  right  over 
to  get  round  at  all.  The  succeeding  curve  is  often  in  the 
opposite  direction,  in  which  event  over  sways  the  car  again 
on  the  other  side,  see-saw  fashion,  until  one  gets  quite 
giddy  looking  over  the  sides  of  precipices  sheer  down  seven 
hundred  to  a  thousand  feet.  This  line,  although  the  first 
built  in  Mexico,  remains  the  finest  bit  of  engineering  to-day, 
and  the  honour  of  construction  belongs  to  Englishmen  ! 

Wheat  is  grown  along  the  route,  particularly  near  the 
famous  pyramids  of  the  Sun  and  Moon.  The  stacks 
of  straw  are  somewhat  peculiar,  and  one  ean  easily  guess 
the  prevailing  wind  of  the  district  by  their  shape.  This 
resembles  a  china  cheese  dish  of  wedge-like  form  ;  where 
the  wind  is  strongest  it  is  finest,  getting  bigger  and 
taller  every  foot,  until  it  ends  in  an  abrupt  wall,  and 
viewed  from  that  point  might  be  an  ordinary  English 
hay-rick.  By  this  ingenious  arrangement  the  straw  is 
not  blown  away,  the  force  of  the  wind  being  broken 
by  its  gentle  incline. 


4oS  MEXICO  AS   I  SAIV  IT. 

The  canon  is  not  so  wild  as  at  Tomellin,  it  is  not 
so  tropical,  perhaps,  as  Tampico,  but  it  is  assuredly 
grand.  Truly  wonderful  scenery  is  to  be  met  with  in 
Mexico. 

When  we  left  the  City  at  7  a.m.  in  the  beginning 
of  March,  there  was  frost  on  the  ground,  but  six  hours 
later  we  were  in  the  heat  of  the  tropics  ! 

Again  one  repeats,  'tis  the  land  of  extremes  of  every 
kind.  As  we  descended  lower  we  left  the  pines  and 
magueys  and  reached  bananas  sheltering  coffee,  likewise 
cotton  and  sugar ;  adobe  houses  disappeared,  and  their 
places  were  taken  by  bamboo  huts.  The  children  ran  about 
clothed  in  nature's  garb  ;  orchids  and  hanging  mosses  clung 
to  the  trees,  and  all  was  tropical  again.  What  a  magnificent 
view  met  our  admiring  gaze  of  the  snow-capped  volcano  of 
Orizaba  ! 

Surely  nothing  in  the  world  can  be  grander  than 
some  of  those  Mexican  scenes  ;  the  Himalayas  are 
higher,  it  is  true,  than  those  extinct  volcanoes — the  Alps 
are  more  numerous,  the  Andes  perhaps  more  rugged  ; 
but  where  else  does  one  get  such  marvellous  pictures  ? 
Below,  a  river  with  alligators  and  terrapins  in  the  water  ; 
parrots  and  monkeys  overhead  ;  wild  tropical  tangled 
jungle  on  the  banks  ;  bamboo,  cocoanut  or  plantain,  then 
the  more  rugged  rocky  peaks,  and  towering  away  into 
that  wonderful  sky  those  great,   snow-clad  volcanoes. 

I  spent  one  night  in  Vera  Cruz — a  town  of  some  size,  but 
without  a  single  cab ! — and  was  off  next  morning  at  5  a.m., 
ere  break  of  day.  Somehow  one  always  seems  to  be 
starting  off  somewhere  before  daybreak  in  Mexico.  To 
be  up  with  the  stars,  and  away  in  the  dark,  is  quite  a 
usual  mode  of  procedure  ;  but  one  learns  by  experience 
that  it  is  worth  while  to  avoid  the  great  heat  of  the  day 
whenever  possible. 

There  is  a  small  branch  line  to  Alvarado  further  south 


R/rERS  AV   THE    TROPICS.  409 

on  the  Gulf,  and — another  of  the  strano-e  anomahes  of 
Mexico  —  the  engine  has  an  electric  head-light!  It 
seems  incongruous  to  find  the  latest  modern  improve- 
ments in  such  an  ancient,  far-away  land  ! 

Fate  ordained  that  I  should  see  the  Republic  almost 
entirely  under  the  guidance  and  escort  of  men.  I  had 
numberless  companions,  but  they  were  always  men.  The 
reader  may  ask  why,  and  the  question  is  not  hard  to 
answer.  It  is  simply  due  to  the  fact  that  no  Mexican 
woman  has  the  slisfhtest  idea  how  to  "  rouo-h  it."  There 
are  comparatively  few  English  or  American  women  in 
Mexico,  and  those  there  are  often  have  to  leave  their 
husbands  for  other  climes  in  summer  ;  added  to  which  the 
officials  everywhere  are  of  course  men,  and  it  was  practically 
the  officials  who  showed  me  Mexico  !  They  were  delightful  ; 
anything  more  considerate,  more  courteous,  more  kindly  than 
the  behaviour  of  those  men  of  all  nationalities  to  me,  a 
stranger,  could  not  possibly  be  imagined,  and  from  the 
bottom  of  my  heart  I  thank  them  one  and  all  for  their 
kindly  aid,  and  unfailing  and  thoughtful  help  during  my 
185  days'   sojourn  in  the  Republic. 

We  left  Vera  Cruz  in  a  special  train,  every  mile  of 
the  line  to  Alvarado  becoming  more  and  more  tropical. 
The  glorious  fan-like  bamboos  were  missing,  but  the 
palms  and  cocoa-nuts,  the  bananas  and  mangoes  were 
there.  Strange  round  objects  on  trees,  resembling  ships' 
buffers,  attracted  my  attention. 

"  What  are  they  ?  "  I  asked. 

"  Hornets'  nests,"  was  the  cheerful  reply. 

There  were  hundreds  of  them.  What  charming  things 
to  disturb !  Egrets  flew  overhead,  and  when  we  reached 
the  lagoon,  we  saw  thousands  of  buzzards  along  the  water's 
edge,  tall,  black,  and  forbidding,  waiting  for  their  carrion 
prey. 

My  companions    on    this    occasion  were  three    men,    J. 


4IO  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

Fletcher  Toomer,  General  Manao^er  of  the  Vera  Cruz 
(Mexico)  Railway,  Limited;  Arthur  Colls,  Secretary,  and 
Arthur  J.  Philbrick,  Traffic  Manager,  Navigation  Depart- 
ment. 

It  is  a  pretty  line,  and  I  was  amused  to  see  the  simple 
native  folk  making  starch  from  yucca  root,  which  grows 
freely  in  sand  dunes.  The  root  is  soaked  in  large 
tubs  or  troughs,  under  bamboo  shelters,  and  subsequently 
ground  by  hand,  generally  by  the  aid  of  rollers.  By  this 
means  a  thick  white  fluid  is  extracted,  which  is  spread  in 
troughs,  and  exposed  to  the  sun  in  order  to  let  the  water 
evaporate.  A  glutinous  residue  is  left,  yellow-brown  in 
colour,  and  as  thick  as  molasses  ;  this  is  afterwards  exposed 
on  the  rush  mats  of  the  country  to  bleach  ;  it  turns  into 
flakes,  and  is  then  fit  to  sell.  There  is  a  large  industry  in 
starch  among  the  Indians. 

Perhaps  those  sand  dunes  may  in  the  future  develop 
into  golf  links  where  the  Indians  of  Alvarado  will  play  ! 
Meantime  the  quaint  little  town  is  famous  for  tarpon  and 
oysters. 

Our  original  plans  having  been  slightly  changed,  we 
reached  our  destination  a  day  sooner  than  expected.  It 
is  terrible  to  arrive  a  day  too  soon  anywhere,  because 
things  are  not  always  ready.  The  river  San  Juan  is 
navigable  to  the  town  of  that  name  from  Alvarado,  nearly 
two  hundred  miles,  and  a  big  steamer  runs  as  far  as  San 
Nicolas,  nearly  half  the  distance.  This  steamer  had  been 
painted  for  the  occasion  ;  but  as  we  arrived  a  day  too 
early,  the  black  paint  of  the  floor,  and  the  white  paint  of 
the  walls  were  not  quite  dry,  consequently  we  stuck  above 
and  below,  and  round  the  corners  !  Quite  an  ocean  boat 
with  cabins  and  comforts  ;  but  she  could  only  go  as  far  as 
San  Nicolas,  where  we  were  to  change  into  a  smaller  craft. 
This  little  steamer,  with  its  flat  bottom  and  hind  wheel,  was 
still  being  carpentered.     We,  a  party  of  four   were  to  meet 


RIVERS   IN   THE    TROPICS.  411 

Sir  Weetman  Pearson  and  eleven  companions  at  San  Juan 
on  their  way  back  from  Tehuantepec,  and  as  we  were  all, 
moreover,  to  live  eighteen  hours  on  board  the  smaller  vessel, 
on  the  return  trip,  a  top  roof  had  been  added,  and  further 
kitchen  arrangements  made,  so  she  was  not  quite  ready. 
We  took  her  in  tow,  with  fourteen  carpenters  on  board,  who 
finished  their  work  by  the  way.  Rather  amusing  to  build 
one's  house  as  one  goes  along,  and  that  on  the  water,  too, 
but  such  was  actually  the  case. 

What  a  transfer  of  goods  !  Our  special  train  from  Vera 
Cruz  was  composed  of  an  engine,  a  luggage  van,  and  the 
directors'  car,  with  cooks,  butlers,  and  food  for  ten  days. 
The  things  came  on  board  ;  sixteen  trestle  beds  and  bed- 
ding, wine  and  spirits,  chairs  and  tables,  food  and  cutlery, 
pots  and  pans,  everything  and  anything  likely  to  be  needed 
by  our  small  army  of  fifteen  men  and  one  woman  ! 

But  the  greatest  trouble  of  all  was  the  ice-chest,  a  thing 
weighing  a  ton,  full  of  chickens,  fish  and  eatables  generally. 
A  dozen  men  were  required  to  get  it  on  to  the  boat,  and 
being  natives,  they  insisted  on  doing  it  their  own  way. 
Such  a  funny  way,  too  !  They  had  rollers,  but  instead  of 
running  and  putting  the  roller  down  again  in  front  of  the 
chest  to  keep  the  thing  going,  they  would  wait  and  think 
about  it,  let  the  box  drop  down  on  its  front  edge,  and  then 
have  all  the  toil  of  lifting  the  end  up  again  !  So  thoroughly 
Mexican  !  We  had  a  lovely  twenty-four  hours  on  that  large 
steamer,  and  I  a  four-berthed  cabin  to  myself,  which  gives 
some  idea  of  the  size  of  these  five  navigable  rivers  of 
Southern  Mexico. 

In  about  three  hours  we  reached  Tlalcotalpam,  quite  a 
flourishing  town  where,  with  ordinary  boats,  a  number  of 
passengers  generally  land  or  come  on  board.  Those  great 
rivers  running  up  from  the  Isthmus,  convey  imported 
goods  to  the  haciendas,  and  bring  back  coffee,  tobacco, 
beans,  log-wood,    cedar,     fustic   (for    dye),   cotton,    rubber, 


412  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT 

cattle,  and  all  manner  of  tropical  fruits.  Small  villages  are 
springing  up  along  the  banks,  since  the  steamship  line  was 
inaugurated. 

The  rivers  are  at  their  lowest  in  March,  just  before  the 
rains  begin,  so  we  had  chosen  a  bad  time  ;  there  is  some- 
times a  difficulty  in  getting  up  the  two  hundred  miles.  They 
are  splendidly  wide,  but  three  feet  is  considered  a  good  depth 
of  water  in  the  higher  reaches.  We  arrived  at  the  end  of 
our  big  boat  journey  at  night,  and  the  carpenters  manfully 
struggled  on  with  candles  (round  which  thousands  of  moths 
hovered),  and  succeeded  in  finishing  the  little  steamer  ready 
for  morning.  There  was  a  terrible  mist  at  San  Nicolas  ; 
all  was  hazy  obscurity  as  we  left  our  large  vessel  at  six  a.m. 
and  walked  along  a  plank  into  the  smaller  craft.  An  excellent 
hot  breakfast,  however,  put  us  in  good  humour,  and  by  nine 
o'clock  the  sun  came  out  to  further  cheer  our  hearts. 

As  the  mist  rose  and  the  warmth  increased,  we  saw 
turtle  swimming  in  the  water,  and  alligators  basking  in  the 
sun.  There  are  many  less  of  the  latter  than  formerly,  as 
an  American  company  is  doing  its  best  to  exterminate  them 
for  the  sake  of  their  skins.  What  a  picturesque  trip  it 
was  !  Indians  were  plying  hither  and  thither  in  the  streams 
in  their  dug-out  canoes.  Boys  and  men  were  coming  down 
to  the  water's  edge  to  fill  their  large  jugs.  Each  piece  of 
pottery  must  have  been  three  times  the  size  of  an  ordinary 
pail,  and,  when  filled,  really  heavy,  yet  the  natives  carry 
them  on  their  shoulders  supported  by  one  or  both  hands. 
After  rolling  up  their  white  trousers  they  would  walk  into 
the  stream,  fill  their  bowl,  and  then  dragging  it  to  the 
water's  edge,  by  some  clever  trick  bend  one  knee,  lift  the 
weight  on  to  that  limb,  and,  after  but  a  moment's  pause, 
twist  it  up  on  to  the  shoulder,  where  a  piece  of  sacking 
or  coarse  stuff  was  already  reposing  to  receive  it.  Such 
a  lazy,  contented,  happy,  animal  sort  of  existence  was  all 
very  Indian,  tropical  and  interesting.     As  the  day  crept  on 


RIVERS   IN   THE    TROPICS.  413 

the  heat  increased,  and  then  we  sought  refreshment  by 
drinking  the  fresh  milk  of  the  unripened  cocoa-nut.  Who 
has  not  read  the  stirring  tales  of  Marryat  and  Ballantyne 
in  youth,  and  learned  the  joys  that  fresh  milk  affords  the 
thirsty  traveller  ?  We  were  not  working  hard,  as  did  the 
heroes  of  those  thrilling  romances  ;  we  were  merely  bask- 
ing in  tropical  sunshine,  on  a  river  steamer,  with  a  fiat 
bottom  and  a  funny  little  paddle  behind,  like  the  famous 
Mississippi  boats,  and  yet  we  all  thoroughly  appreciated 
that  fresh  milk  !  The  cocoa-nut  was  green.  Cutting  off 
the  top  as  one  would  an  &gg,  one  discovered  a  white 
woolly  lining  one-and-a-half  inches  thick.  This  would 
later  have  been  fibrous  and  useful  for  mat-making.  After 
cutting  off  the  end,  the  milk  was  revealed.  Three  tumblers 
of  perfectly  clear  water,  with  a  deliciously  refreshing  taste, 
though  in  no  way  fiavoured  with  cocoa-nut.  A  thin  brown 
coating  was  beginning  to  adhere  to  the  shell,  and  shortly, 
if  it  had  been  left,  the  actual  part  which  we  call  cocoa-nut 
would  have  fastened  to  these  edg^es  as  it  formed  itself  out 
of  the  liquid.  The  cocoa-nut  rind  was  not  yet  set,  and 
therefore  the  entire  shell  was  full  of  liuid.  It  was  an  ideal 
drink,  improved — the  men  declared — by  a  spoonful  of  gin, 
not  enouQ;h  to  disg-uise  the  milk,  but  to  brino-  out  its 
fiavour.  A  cocoa-nut  bears  at  seven  years  of  age,  and  its 
life  is  about  ten  times  that  lengfth. 

The  turtles — or  more  properly  speaking,  terrapins,  for 
we  were  on  fresh  water — amused  me.  I  had  never  seen 
live  turtles  before,  except  at  the  famous  "  Ship  and  Turtle," 
in  the  City  of  London,  where  they  swim  about  in  tanks  ; 
although  I  had  eaten  them  in  soup  at  the  Mansion  House, 
sitting  next  to  a  Lord  Mayor  !  Here  they  were  on  their 
native  heath — as  an  Irishman  might  say — and  very  happy 
they  looked.  The  Indians  catch  them  in  nets  or  creels, 
something  like  lobster  pots  ;  stew  and  eat  them  in  lumps, 
for  the  alderman's  soup  is  unknown  to  Mexico  ! 


414  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

Then  there  were  the  alligators — dozens,  one  might  almost 
say  hundreds,  of  them.  As  we  approached  they  were  lying 
on  the  banks,  basking  in  the  sun — grey-looking  objects  that 
mio-ht  have  been  the  trunks  of  trees,  they  were  so  muddy. 
Six  or  ten  feet  long  seemed  to  be  the  average  size,  and  one 
distino-uished  them  from  afar  because  their  heads  were 
always  pointed  upwards. 

"  I  will  photograph  one,"  said  I,  and  accordingly  the 
camera  was  unearthed  and  I  made  my  preparations.  Up 
till  then  we  had  seen  them  every  few  minutes  ;  now  that  all 
was  ready  for  the  fray  not  one  appeared  for  more  than  an 
hour,  and  even  when  they  did  eventually  emerge,  it  was 
impossible  to  take  them  properly.  They  are  shy,  and  as 
they  lay  half  asleep  they  heard  the  rattle  of  our  engines  in 
the  water,  and  with  a  start  of  surprise  and  fear,  promptly 
walked  off  and  were  lost  to  view.  Alligators  '•  at  home  " 
do  not  crawl,  as  I  always  imagined  they  did  ;  they  get  right 
up  on  their  little  legs,  and,  head  in  air,  march  along  quite 
briskly.  Their  legs  are  like  those  of  a  dachshund,  bent 
and  bowed,  but  they  can  almost  run  !  Alas,  out  of  half-a- 
dozen  snap-shots  none  were  really  distinct.  The  northern 
half  of  Mexico  afforded  splendid  photographs,  the  air  was 
so  clear,  dry  and  sunny  ;  the  shadows  deep,  the  lights 
brilliant — but  in  the  tropics  there  is  a  moisture  in  the  air 
which  gives  a  hazy  look  to  the  plates. 

Parrots  flew  overhead,  green  as  usual,  and  always  in 
couples.  One  never  sees  a  solitary  parrot ;  they  are  birds 
that  seem  to  like  company,  and  prefer  to  screech  in  pairs. 
Perhaps  parrots  gossip,  and  therefore  meet  in  couples  to 
wreck  their  neighbours'  reputations. 

Navigation  in  a  low  state  of  the  river,  and  going  against 
the  stream,  becomes  exciting  at  times.  Our  flat-bottomed 
steamer  was  like  a  Thames  house-boat,  and  when  the  water 
grew  shallow  a  man  at  each  side  stood  in  front,  pole  in  hand. 
Rings  were  painted  in  various  colours  a  foot  apart  on  these 


Alligators  on  banks  of  tropical  rivers. 


Indian  dug-out  canoe,  150  years  old  ;   River  San  Juan,  Isthmus  of  Tehuantepec. 

[^To  face  page  j^\\ 


RIVERS   IN   THE    TROPICS.  415 

poles,    and    when  the   captain   or  pilot  called  out  to  take 
soundings,  these  men  dipped  their  poles,  and  cried  : — 


Dos  y  medio 
Dos  escasos 
Dos  largos 
Fondo  blando 
Fondo  duro 


two-and-a-half  feet. 
two  short, 
two  and  a  bit. 
soft  bottom, 
hard  bottom. 


They  almost  sing  these  soundings,  which  so  quickly 
follow  suit ;  they  only  turn  the  big  pole  over  in  the  hand 
and  dip  it  in  again.  In  the  silence  of  a  tropical  evening, 
that  song  was  charming.  We  got  along  quite  happily  in  a 
couple  of  feet  of  water  ;  in  parts  the  river  was  quite  deep, 
but  when  it  became  shallower  than  twenty-four  inches,  or 
we  ran  on  to  a  sand-bank,  trouble  ensued. 

Sand-banks  in  places  were  common,  despite  the  width  of 
the  river,  and  several  times  we  were  firmly  caught.  When 
this  occurred,  down  got  the  captain,  out  came  the  pilot,  and 
into  the  water  both  stepped,  pole  in  hand,  to  find  the  best 
way  off  or  over.  They  wore  no  shoes,  and  apparently  wet 
trousers  did  not  signify,  for  they  waded  about  cheerfully 
in  the  stream  until  they  found  what  they  wanted.  At  other 
times,  at  some  sharp  bend  where  the  current  was  strong, 
we  were  swung  round  on  to  a  bank  and  got  hooked  up 
among  the  over-hanging  trees.  Then  our  two  "  sounding  " 
men  produced  long  poles  with  forks  at  the  end,  and  with  all 
their  might  and  main  shoved  us  off.  We  had  no  real 
mishaps,  because  our  only  troubles  were  the  shallows,  and 
there  if  things  went  very  wrong  one  could  always  get  off 
and  walk  ashore  !  So  long  as  daylight  lasted  we  steamed, 
but  in  spite  of  a  glorious  moon  we  could  not  do  so  at  night 
owing  to  the  constantly  shifting  hidden  sand-banks,  and 
trunks  of  hidden  trees  called  "  snags  "  in  our  course,  to  say 
nothing  of  the  strength  of  the  current. 

We    once   drew    up    near    a    small  native    village    about 
7  p.m.,    to    await    the  dawn   of  morning.       Of  course,    all 


4i6  .  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

the  inhabitants  came  down  to  view  us,  and  squatted  on 
their  heels  on  the  bank  to  watch  us  enjoying  our  dinner. 
What  amused  them  most  ?  Why,  our  knives  and  forks. 
They  had  never  seen  anything  so  remarkable.  T/iey 
shovel  in  their  food — if  they  are  rich  enough  to  have  any 
— with  bits  of  tortillas,  and  that  people  should  use  a 
fork  instead  of  a  piece  of  corn-cake,  or  that  each  person 
should  have  a  knife  to  himself  was,  they  thought,  extra- 
ordinary. 

Dinner  over,  the  excitement  of  the  camp  began.  Our 
upper  deck  was  exactly  like  the  top  of  a  Thames  house-boat 
(there  were  no  cabins  anywhere),  excepting  that  we  had  two 
or  three  plies  of  canvas  roof  to  keep  out  the  sun.  Canvas 
walls  were  let  down  at  the  sides,  as  far  as  the  bulwarks, 
and  one  end  was  partitioned  off  by  a  canvas  screen  for  me. 

This  was  my  chamber  ;  a  trestle  bed,  some  blankets, 
pillows,  chair,  and  a  tin  tripod  wash-handstand — which  I 
handed  out  for  the  use  of  others  when  done  with — com- 
pleted my  furniture,  but  the  little  room  was  quite  comfort- 
able. On  the  other  side  of  the  canvas  sheet  my  three  com- 
panions slept,  while  beyond,  the  captain  and  pilot  twisted 
themselves  into  balls  in  the  very  small  wheel-house, 
and  below,  the  chef  and  butlers  sought  repose  amid  wine 
cases  and  cutlery.  The  Indian  crew  and  underlings  took 
their  petate  (grass  mats),  and,  spreading  them  on  the 
bank,  rolled  their  heads  up  in  their  blankets  and  went 
to  sleep,  leaving  the  lower  part  of  their  bodies  perfectly 
bare.  There  were  no  mosquitoes,  nothing  to  disturb  our 
peace.  "Lights  out "  rang  forth  about  ten  o'clock;  but 
it  was  just  as  bright  without  them,  for  the  moon  shone 
vividly  and  the  stars  twinkled  merrily. 

"  Twinkle,  twinkle,  little  star,"  dear  old  rhyme  of  our 
youth,  came  back  to  me,  as  clearly  and  distinctly  as  though 
it  had  been  learnt  but  yesterday.  Ah,  those  baby  verses 
were  memorised  when  the  slate  of  the  mind  was  fresh  and 


RIVERS   IN   THE    TROPICS.  417 

clean ;  its  impression — like  many  impressions  of  one's 
youth — seems  indelible.  As  years  roll  by  the  slate 
becomes  crowded  with  manifold  subjects,  until  some 
memories  have  to  be  sponged  off  to  make  room  for  newer 
impressions,  and  the  last  inscriptions  become  hazy  and 
blurred.  If  only  we  could  keep  our  slates  clean  through 
life,  the  tangled  threads  of  memory  would  not  get  so 
confused. 

The  night  was  calm  and  still  ;  the  heat  of  a  tropical  day 
had  passed,  and  hour  by  hour  it  grew  colder  and  colder 
until  the  miasma  of  early  morning  rose  from  the  river 
and  hung  over  the  banks.  By  4  a.m.  we  were  enveloped 
in  a  thick  fog.  Three  blankets  were  not  enough  then,  even 
a  fourth  could  not  keep  out  the  insidious  damp,  for  the  bed- 
clothes became  quite  sodden.  I  put  up  my  hand  to  my 
hair — it  was  as  wet  as  though  I  had  just  washed  it  ;  but 
then  I  was  practically  sleeping  in  the  open — a  roof  of 
canvas  over  my  head  and  a  screen  of  canvas  around  were 
of  no  avail  against  mist  which  penetrated  everywhere  ;  I 
was  wet  through.  It  was  not  for  long,  however  ;  a  couple 
of  hours  later,  with  its  first  lifting,  we  started  off  again,  and 
then  the  warmth  of  the  sun  soon  cleared  it  away.  By 
nine  o'clock  we  were  back  in  all  the  heat  of  another 
tropical  day,  which  was  not  overpowering  by  any  means, 
for  we  were  moving  and  making  a  breeze  as  we  swung 
round  the  banks  of  the  winding  river. 

Dressing  was  rather  a  funny  entertainment,  for  the  fog 
still  hung  around,  clothes  felt  cold  and  clammy  ;  but,  when 
one  is  happy,  dreams  of  malaria  do  not  trouble  the  mind, 
and  yellow  fever  germs  had  been  left  behind  on  the  coast. 

It  seemed  strange  to  see  shoeless  sailors  all  wearing 
beautifully  coloured  scarves,  smoking  cigars — good  cigars, 
too,  with  a  delicious  aroma  ;  but  then  we  were  in  the  land 
of  tobacco,  where  cigars  could  be  purchased  at  the  modest 
cost  of  three  or  four  a  penny !     They  smoke  a  great  deal, 

27 


41 8  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

those  dark-skinned  Indians,  some  of  whom  are  splendid- 
looking  men.  The  type  was  often  Jewish,  but  they  were 
all  big  and  brawny  with  curly  hair — not  woolly  or  frizzy, 
on  the  contrary,  wavy  and  silky — and  such  glorious  eyes ! 
They  were  just  the  folk  to  sit  as  artists'  models,  and  the 
touch  of  colour  at  their  throats  added  a  charm  to  the 
picture.  They  were  of  the  Zapotec  tribe,  descendants  of 
the  people  who  built  Mitla. 

My  companions — my  three  chaperons,  as  I  called  them — 
dressed  in  white  (shoes,  coat,  trousers  and  hat),  looked 
like  Indian  officers  in  their  tropical  cleanliness.  Why  is 
it,  I  wonder,  that  this  sort  of  attire  is  so  becoming:  } 
Flannels,  ducks,  or  neglige  of  any  kind  invariably  suit  a 
man,  though  perhaps  he  never  looks  such  a  "gentleman  "  as 
in  that  most  hideous  but  refining  of  costumes,  dress  clothes. 

Three  days  we  spent  on  the  river — three  happy,  indolent 
days,  basking  in  the  sunshine,  and  letting  the  tropical 
vegetation,  flowers,  foliage  and  animal  life,  sink  into  our 
very  souls.  It  was  all  so  restful,  so  interesting,  so  re- 
miniscent of  Robinson  Crusoe.  Here  were  the  jungled 
forests,  with  the  creepers  and  parasites  hanging  from  the 
boughs  of  the  trees  and  re-planting  themselves  in  the  earth. 
Seek  where  one  would,  one  could  find  no  admittance  from 
the  banks  ;  it  was  all  thick,  impenetrable  jungle.  But 
behind  it  tigers  roamed,  and  a  taper  peered  upon  us  from  a 
bough ;  beneath  heavy  undergrowth  snakes,  three  yards 
long,  were  quietly  crawling. 

The  real  primeval  forest  is  a  very  different  thing  from 
the  pictures  we  see  in  story-books.  I  remember  once 
sitting  next  to  H.  M.  Stanley  (now  Sir  Henry),  of 
"  Darkest  Africa  "  fame,  at  a  Society  of  Authors'  dinner, 
when  the  conversation  turned  on  the  subject  of  primeval 
forests.  Mr.  Stanley,  usually  a  silent  personage,  on  this 
occasion — perhaps  the  result  of  a  little  anxiety  concerning 
the  speech  he  was  expected  to  make  later  in  the  evening, 


RIVERS   IN   THE    TROPICS.  419 

and  which  he  did  admirably — proved  talkative.  One  of  his 
remarks  I  well  remember. 

"A  primeval  forest,"  said  he,  "is  an  impenetrable  wall, 
which  man's  skill  and  pluck  are  sorely  tried  to  enter." 

These  words  came  back  to  me  on  the  Isthmus.  Verily 
an  impenetrable  wall.  The  undergrowth — six,  eight,  or 
perhaps  ten  feet  high — was  so  close,  so  jumbled,  so  inter- 
woven that  no  human  being  could  find  space  to  stand. 
A  lofty  palm  here,  a  bamboo  there,  an  orchid  or  a 
mistletoe  clinging  to  that  cedar  or  mahogany  tree,  while 
graceful  tendrils  descended  from  the  boughs  and  took  root 
in  the  ground  below.  All  things  grew  so  thickly  together 
that  it  seemed  impossible  they  could  find  room  even  to 
take  root  ;  but  they  did,  and  every  variety  of  vegetation 
appeared  to  thrive.  This  underwood  is  not  so  difficult  to 
clear  as  might  be  imagined  ;  it  is  simply  ignited  and  burnt. 
In  the  hot  season  everything  is  dry,  and  whole  spaces  are 
easily  cleared.  No  one  could  go  into  that  jungle  and  cut 
it  down  !  In  the  first  place  they  could  not  get  in,  in  the 
second  it  is  the  home  of  snakes  and  lizards,  scorpions  and 
reptiles  of  all  sorts,  to  say  nothing  of  larger  animals  and 
venomous  mosquitoes  ;  however,  firing  is  comparatively 
easy,  and  can  to  a  great  extent  be  guided  and  controlled. 
The  ash  forms  a  manure,  and  a  year  later  crops  may  be 
raised  on  what  but  a  few  months  previously  was  primeval 
forest ! 

There  were  lovely  green  lizards  (Iguana)  about  eighteen 
inches  to  two  feet  long  crawling  up  the  banks,  and  later  I 
tasted  one  of  them  and  found  it  excellent.  The  natives  will 
not  eat  ducks  ;  they  consider  they  are  filthy-living  animals, 
while  these  lizards,  on  the  contrary,  are  clean  and  thought 
a  great  luxury,  as,  indeed,  is  correct,  for  they  taste  like 
chicken. 

Towards  sunset  on  the  third  day  of  our  trip  we  neared 
San  Juan,  the  little  native  town  which  was  our  goal  ;  but 

27* 


420  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

there  is  "  many  a  slip,"  as  we  all  know,  and  about  a  mile 
away  we  stuck  ignominiously  on  a  sand-bank  !  Yes,  we 
stuck,  and  stuck  hard  and  fast,  too,  and  for  an  hour  or  more 
it  seemed  as  if  we  were  unlikely  ever  to  move  again. 
Signals  of  distress  went  up  ;  we  whistled  and  whistled 
again,  till  finally  one  of  those  large  picturesque  barges  or 
"dug-out"  canoes,  which  do  so  much  of  the  carrying  trade 
of  the  rivers,  came  to  our  rescue.  It  was  said  to  be  one 
hundred  and  fifty  years  old,  and  was  cut  out  of  three  long  tree 
trunks  joined  together,  pointing  upwards  at  each  end.  A 
part  of  the  deck  was  covered  in  with  bamboo  matting  ;  but 
the  heat  of  travelling  slowly,  and  low  down  towards  the 
water,  must  have  been  terrible  for  passengers  before  steamers 
were  introduced.  This  canoe  relieved  us  of  our  ice-chest 
and  wine-cases,  of  all  the  heavy  things,  in  fact.  Then 
some  thirty  Indians,  in  nature's  garb,  descended  into  the 
water  and  pulled  with  their  hands  or  pushed  with  their  legs, 
making  a  prise  or  lever  with  poles,  by  means  of  which  they 
endeavoured  to  move  the  sand  beneath  our  craft,  some  of 
them  working  chains  backwards  and  forwards  also  with 
a  view  to  accomplishing  that  object.  For  three  hours, 
in  the  gloam  of  evening,  they  worked,  perspiring  at  every 
pore,  and  eventually  got  us  off.  I  had  enjoyed  it  all, 
for  the  moon  was  radiant,  a  beautiful  tropical  moon,  the 
evening  warm,  the  scene  quite  lovely,  and  the  dark  figures 
most  picturesque. 

The  men  worked  to  a  sort  of  tune  which  reminded 
me  strangely  of  other  scenes,  thousands  of  miles  away  ;  for 
when  I  christened  the  "  P.  and  O."  steamer  "  Assaye  "  on 
the  Clyde  a  few  months  previously  the  men  dug  her  out  of 
her  cradle  to  much  the  same  time  and  music.  Poor  Indians, 
theirs  was  the  longer  and  tougher  job,  for  they  had  no 
modern  improvements,  no  greased  "  permanent  ways,"  and 
the  tide  was  rolling  the  sand  more  and  more  against  our 
flat-bottomed  craft  every  moment. 


RIVERS   IN   THE    TROPICS.  421 

Suddenly  a  yell  of  triumph  pierced  the  air,  a  joyful  "  She's 
off"  rang  forth  in  many  Indian  dialects,  and  away  we 
steamed,  about  nine  p.m.,  to  the  little  town  the  lights  of 
which  we  had  seen  dimly  flickering  for  hours  ! 

A  "special,"  composed  of  an  engine  and  Sir  Weetman 
Pearson's  own  private  car,  had  been  sent  up  for  us,  and  five 
minutes  after  landing  we  were  steaming  away  through  the 
stillness  of  the  night,  along  the  newly  opened  Juile  Line  to 
join  the  Isthmus  of  Tehuantepec  Railway,  where  we  were  to 
meet  a  party  of  "  men,  men,  nothing  but  men  !  " 

Was  it  not  the  famous  Sarah,  Duchess  of  Marlborough, 
who,  when  asked  by  someone  whether  she  liked  books, 
replied  :  "  Books !  Prithee  do  not  talk  to  me  of  books  ! 
The  only  books  I  know  are  men  and  cards." 

She  would  indeed  have  been  in  her  element  in  Mexico ! 
We  travelled  all  night,  reaching  Coatzacoalcos,  the  follow- 
ing morning,  where  we  joined  Sir  Weetman  Pearson's  party, 
which  consisted  of  General  Mena,  Minister  of  Communica- 
tions, and  formerly  Mexican  Minister  in  London  and  Paris  ; 
Julio  M.  Limantour,  brother  of  the  Minister  of  Finance  ; 
Carlos  de  Landa  y  Escandon  ;  Augustine  Schulze,  nephew 
of  the  famous  General  Rincorn ;  J.  B.  Body,  Managing 
Director  of  the  Tehuantepec  Railway ;  Harold  Pearson 
(my  host's  son)  ;  H.  H.  Crabtree  ;  E.  Sayer  ;  Miguel 
Palacios,  and  others. 

What  a  beautiful  spot  Coatzacoalcos  is!  Unfortunately, 
I  was  not  able  to  see  much  of  it,  for  a  "norther"  had 
sprung  up,  and  a  norther  invariably  absorbs  one's  whole 
attention,  and  does  not  leave  room  for  much  else. 

Mrs.  Mellor,  a  lady  from  Jamaica,  invited  me  to  luncheon, 
which  was  quite  a  remarkable  meal.  I  was  helped  to  some- 
thing of  a  fishy  nature,  and  the  moment  I  tasted  it  ex- 
claimed : 

"  Surely  this  is  Norwegian  fish-pudding !  " 

"  Yes,"  replied  my  hostess,  "  but  how  do  you  know  that  ?  " 


422  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

"  Because  I  have  eaten  it  sitting  beside  Dr.  Nansen  and 
Bjornstjerne  Bjornson  in  Norway  ;  but  how  on  earth  did 
you  get  it  in  the  tropics  ?  " 

"  By  means  of  tins  ;  everything  comes  here  in  tins  !  " 

How  little  we  home  folk  appreciate  the  possibilities  of 
tins.  Later  on  we  had  a  most  excellent  plum-pudding,  my 
Christmas  pudding  served  in  the  tropics  in  March  ;  tinned 
again.  They  are  sent  out  in  thousands  from  England  to  all 
parts  of  the  world,  and  eaten  in  the  tropics  with  sunbeams 
and  monkeys  peeping  in  at  the  windows,  a  reminder  of 
Christmas  amid  snow  and  ice !  Canning — as  our  American 
friends  call  it — has  reached  wonderful  perfection,  and  in 
places  like  Mexico,  where  one  lives  to  a  great  extent  on 
tinned  foods,  one  learns  their  value  and  realises  how  good 
they  invariably  are.  Added  to  which,  after  seeing  the 
cleanliness  of  their  preparation  in  a  place  like  Chicago, 
one  gladly  welcomes  anything  so  sweet,  wholesome  and 
palatable. 

What  a  lot  of  things  one  learns  by  travelling ! 

Touchstone  says  : — 

"  When  I  was  at  home  I  was  in  a  better  place, 
But  travellers  must  be  content." 

Surely  the  one  makes  us  appreciate  the  other ! 


A  Tehuantc'pec  !j;iii,  uilli  her  "'  lliiipil  "'  (lic;ul-L;c;ir) 


To  face  page  423.] 


423 


CHAPTER   XXV. 

THE    ISTHMUS    OP^    TEHUANTEPEC* 

Prophecy  often  works  out  its  own  fulfilment. 

When  in  15 19  Cortes  arrived  from  Spain  to  conquer 
Mexico,  he  landed  at  Vera  Cruz  ;  but  that  harbour  being 
considered  dangerous,  he  had  the  coast  surveyed  for  sixty 
leaofues  further  south,  as  far,  indeed,  as  the  Coatzacoalcos 
river,  which  was  finally  decided  upon  as  affording  suitable 
anchorage.  Here  a  fort  was  built  during  the  following 
year,  and  a  colony  settled  under  Velasquez  de  Leon, 
Nearly  four  hundred  years  later  this  chosen  spot  promises 
to  become  one  of  the  most  important  seaports  in  the 
world. 

From  a  letter  written  to  Charles  V.  of  Spain,  it  appears 
that  Cortes  was  most  anxious  to  find  a  Strait  which  would 
naturally  unite  the  Atlantic  and  Pacific  Oceans.  He  saw 
the  immense  importance  of  a  direct  route  between  those 
vast  seas.  In  vain  he  sought  some  natural  channel ;  but 
finding  none,  and  still  realising  the  necessity  of  a  connec- 
tion for  the  purposes  of  trade,  he  conceived  the  idea  of  a 
carriage  road,  by  means  of  which  to  supply  Spain  with 
spices  from  the  East  Indies,  and  return  exports  from 
Europe  to  the  Western  hemisphere.  Strong  in  his  belief 
of  the  ultimate  importance  of  the  Isthmus  of  Tehuantepec 
Cortes   selected  tracts  of  land   on   the  Coatzacoalcos  river, 

*  Reprinted,  with  additions,  from  the  Fortnightly,  by  permission. 


424  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT, 

inland  towards  Oaxaca  and  Mitla,  and  further  west  towards 
the  town  of  Tehuantepec  near  the  Pacific  coast,  which  tracts 
were  finally  conferred  on  him  by  grants  from  Charles  V. 
This  far-seeing  Spanish  conqueror  succeeded  even  in  those 
days  to  work  mines  on  his  property  at  considerable  profit 
— Oaxaca  still  being  famous  for  its  production  of  ore 
although  not  so  much  mining  is  done  on  the  Isthmus  now 
as  formerly.  History  also  asserts  that  the  first  gold  to 
excite  the  greed  of  Spain  was  obtained  by  the  conquerors  at 
Chinamoca  near  Coatzacoalcos.  To-day,  however,  agricul- 
ture is  the  great  wealth  of  the  Tehuantepec  country. 
Petroleum  has  also  lately  been  found  there,  which  it  is 
proposed  to  use  in  the  locomotives  ;  for  a  daily  passenger 
train  is  now  running  across  the  Isthmus,  to  say  nothing  of 
freiofht  trains. 

Humboldt,  three  hundred  years  after  Cortes,  saw 
the  enormous  possibilities  of  the  Tehuantepec  Isthmus 
route  between  the  East  and  the  West,  speaking  of 
it  as  the  "  Bridge  of  the  World's  commerce,"  and 
to-day  the  prophecies  of  these  two  men  are  becoming 
realities;  for  the  Isthmus  of  Tehuantepec  promises  to 
revolutionise  the  traffic  of  the  Eastern  and  Western 
hemispheres. 

Trade  is  ever  increasing  in  the  world.  People  grow  more 
luxurious  with  every  decade.  The  working  classes  now 
enjoy  their  tea  from  China  and  Ceylon,  their  sugar  from 
the  West  Indies,  their  tobacco  from  Havannah,  their  grain 
from  Russia  or  the  United  States,  and  their  spices  from 
the  East  Indies.  What  does  this  mean  }  Simply,  every 
year  more  and  more  export  and  import,  more  and  more 
interchange  of  goods.  Over  the  whole  world,  in  fact,  traffic 
is  increasing,  and  the  shortest  and  cheapest  routes  naturally 
attract  most  custom. 

No  trade  caravans  could  face  the  vast  deserts,  or  the 
wild  Indians  in  the  far  north-west,  therefore  a  shorter   and 


THE   ISTHMUS   OF   TEHUANTEPEC.  425 

more  southern  route  for  commerce  became  a  necessity.  A 
cart  road,  as  suggested  by  Cortes,  was  accordingly  made 
across  the  Isthmus,  and  coaches  ran  from  Minatitlan  to 
Salina  Cruz  on  the  Pacific,  carrying  the  miners  and  settlers 
who  flocked  to  California  over  fifty  years  ago  when  gold 
was  first  discovered  there.  Later  arose  the  idea  of  con- 
structing a  railway  for  ships  to  be  dragged  across  ;  a  canal 
was  also  proposed.  No  ship  railway  has  as  yet  been 
constructed  anywhere  ;  but  some  years  back  the  idea  of 
conveying  vessels  across  narrow  necks  of  land,  by  means 
of  innumerable  trucks  running  on  several  parallel  lines  of 
rail,  was  much  discussed  by  engineers.  The  project  took 
definite  shape  about  twelve  years  ago,  when  one  was 
partly  made  between  Canada  and  Nova  Scotia  with  the 
object  of  saving  the  detour  round  the  latter.  Financial 
troubles  overtook  the  company,  and  the  scheme  was 
abandoned. 

The  Government  of  Mexico  finally  conceived  the  plan 
of  making  a  railway  across  the  Isthmus  of  Tehuantepec, 
and  in  1895  finished  the  line.  Unfortunately  they  did 
not  then  realise  that  it  was  of  little  use  running  a  rail- 
way from  the  Gulf  of  Mexico  to  the  Pacific  coast  unless 
they  a'lso  provided  suitable  harbours  where  large  ships 
could  enter  at  all  times.  This  railway,  however,  proved 
the  first  step  towards  success.  General  Diaz,  assisted 
by  his  ministers,  found  that  important  harbours  at  both 
ends  were  necessary  ;  but  Government  required  co- 
operation in  so  great  an  enterprise.  They  realised  the 
necessity  of  spending  money  on  the  ports  ;  but  they  also 
felt  the  working  of  the  entire  scheme  would  have  a 
better  chance  in  private  hands,  than  if  undertaken  solely 
by  Government. 

At  that  time  Sir  Weetman  Pearson — head  of  the  firm  of 
S.  Pearson  and  Son — was  already  building  the  harbour  at 
Vera   Cruz,    which    wonderful   piece    of   engineering   I   saw 


426  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

almost  completed  in  March,  1901.  He  had  also  made 
the  Drainage  Canal  in  the  valley  of  Mexico  City  for  the 
Government,  and  saw  great  possibilities  in  the  Tehuan- 
tepec  scheme.  As  the  result  of  many  conferences,  the 
Government  of  Mexico  and  Sir  Weetman  Pearson  agreed 
to  become  partners  for  a  term  of  fifty  years,  in  the  gigantic 
project  of  working  the  Isthmus  of  Tehuantepec  Railway 
and  building  harbours  at  Coatzacoalcos  on  the  Mexican 
Gulf  and   Salina  Cruz  on  the  Pacific. 

It  was  arranged  that  fine  deep-water  ports  should  be 
constructed  at  both  ends  of  the  ocean-to-ocean  railway. 
These  ports — which  will  probably  cost  three  millions  ster- 
ling— are  to  be  paid  for  by  the  Government  and  built  by 
Pearson  and  Son.  The  Government,  which  has  already 
spent  nearly  four  millions  sterling  on  the  railway,  agreed 
to  spend  half  a  million  more,  and  there  the  Mexican  obli- 
gations end.  Pearson  and  Son  become  their  partners,  and 
are  allowed  a  free  hand,  so  that  this  huge  undertaking  may 
be  run  upon  business  lines.  The  Government  is  to  be 
congratulated  upon  its  prescience  in  having  arranged  that 
a  commercial  enterprise  of  international  importance  should 
not  be  weighted  by  departmental  control  in  its  every-day 
working.      Below  is  a  resimte  of  the  agreement. 


The  maximum  rates  for  traffic  are  to  be  :  Passenger,  first-class,  four  cents  ;  second- 
class,  three  cents ;  third-class,  two  cents  ;  merchandise  per  metric  ton,  from  three  cents 
for  sixth-class  to  eight  cents  for  first-class.  Rates  on  domestic  merchandise  shall  be 
differential  and  on  a  decreasing  scale.  The  distribution  of  the  merchandise  among  the 
six  classes  shall  be  effected,  in  concert  with  the  Department  of  Communications  and 
Public  Works,  every  three  years.  Cereals  shall  be  always  counted  in  the  third-class, 
rails  and  such  like  shall  enjoy  a  rebate  of  thirty  per  cent,  from  the  third-class  rate  ;  the 
charge  for  coal  will  be  one-and-a-half  cents  per  ton  per  kilometre  if  in  carload  lots 
and  destined  for  consumption  in  Mexico.  The  Government  shall  have  a  rebate  for  the 
transportation  of  coal,  troops,  immigrants,  etc.     Mails  are  to  be  carried  free. 

Rates  for  telegrams  shall  be,  for  every  ten  words  sent  lOO  kilometres,  fifteen  cents. 

At  the  ports  of  Coatzacoalcos  and  Salina  Cruz,  the  Government  charge  will  be  for 
pilotage  and  sanitary  dues  one-half  of  the  lowest  rate  at  Vera  Cruz  or  Tampico  ;  for 
wharfage  twenty-five  cents  a  ton  ;  and  also  a  transit  due  of  forty  cents  per  ton  of  mer- 
chandise, or  per  passenger. 


THE   ISTHMUS   OF   TEHUANTEPEC.  427 

The  company,  within  the  maximum  tariff'  given,  have  the  right  to  fix  the  rate  on  all 
through  traffic. 

No  consular  invoices  are  required  for  merchandise  transported  over  the  railway  to  be 
re-shipped.  Merchandise  will  not  be  subject  to  Custom  House  examination  unless  it 
be  destined  for  consumption  in  Mexico.  No  passports  will  be  required  of  persons  in 
transit. 

The  company  may  organise  a  Navigation  Company  to  work  in  conjunction  with  the 
railway,  in  the  Pacific,  and  also  in  the  Atlantic. 

Vessels  belonging  to  the  maritime  service  shall  enjoy  a  twenty-five  per  cent,  reduction 
in  sanitary  and  pilotage  dues  and  fifty  per  cent,  in  other  dues  in  other  ports  of  the 
Republic. 

The  Government  may  avail  itself  of  the  ships  of  the  company,  in  case  of  war,  on 
payment  of  a  monthly  remuneration. 

If  it  is  necessary  to  extend  the  railway  or  ports,  the  company  can  borrow  money, 
offering  as  security  the  proceeds  of  the  railway  and  ports. 

When  the  contract  is  ended,  any  bonds  that  may  have  been  so  issued  shall  be  re- 
deemed by  the  Government,  unless  the  Government  decides  to  take  upon  itself  the 
obligations  connected  with  said  bonds  and  debt.  From  the  other  securities  belonging 
to  the  company,  the  Government  and  the  company  shall  be  paid  for  the  capital  in- 
vested, and  the  surplus  divided. 

The  Government  binds  itself  not  to  grant  during  the  period  of  this  contract  any  con- 
cession for  the  operation  of  other  railways  or  ports  within  fifty  kilometres  of  these 
works,  and  it  will  not  authorise  railway  lines,  which  now  have  the  right  to  connect  with 
the  Tehuantepec  Railway,  to  make  special  transit  or  through  rates  from  the  Gulf  to  the 
Pacific. 

There  is  not  much  doubt  that  sooner  or  later  the  Nicar- 
agua or  Panama  Canal  will  be  miade,  not  so  much  on 
account  of  necessity  from  a  mercantile  point  of  view,  as 
from  its  being  a  political  necessity  for  the  United 
States  Navy.  The  cost  of  any  canal  prohibits  its  com- 
pletion as  a  private  enterprise.  It  must  be  a  Gov^ernment 
work.  Governments  move  slowly.  Besides,  the  great 
railways  stretching  across  the  United  States  have  interests 
that  would  be  seriously  affected  if  a  canal  were  made, 
and  they  do  not  usually  allow  rapid  legislation  when  such 
affects  their  purses.  Hence  it  will  probably  be  years 
before  the  matter  is  seriously  taken  in  hand  by  the  Execu- 
tive in  Washington.  Then  it  will  probably  require  ten  to 
fifteen  years  to  construct  before  the  first  man-of-war  will 
be  able  to  sail  through  the  canal,  and  Tehuantepec  will 
still  claim  freight  and  passenger  traffic,  and  remain  a  great 
commercial  route. 


428  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

As  said  previously,  this  new  Tehuantepec  route  is  likely 
to  revolutionise  the  carrying  trade  between  the  East  and 
West,  most  of  which  hitherto  has  been  carried  in  the  North 
by  the  Southern  Pacific  Railway,  but  even  apart  from  taking 
any  of  that,  commerce  is  increasing  so  rapidly,  the  new  route 
is  sure  to  get  its  full  share  of  freight.  Meantime,  the  Panama 
Railway  has  long  had  a  monopoly  in  the  South.  Its  earn- 
ings must  have  been  about  ;!{^  180,000  a  year  net,  in  spite  of 
lack  of  port  facilities  and  its  often  prohibitive  rates.  Speak- 
ing roughly,  1,500,000  tons  annually  is  at  present  the 
average  trans-continental  trade  carried  by  the  Panama  and 
United  States  Railways,  and  this  trade  is  steadily  increas- 
ing. The  bulk  of  this  trade  is  between  the  Eastern  States 
and  California  ;  but  tea  and  silk  from  the  Orient,  with  cotton 
as  the  return  freight,  is  no  inconsiderable  traffic. 

The  Tehuantepec  Railway  will  be  ready  to  commence  its 
carrying  trade  towards  the  end  of  1902,  long  before  Nicara- 
gua can  even  be  begun  !  Apparently  the  route  is  looked 
upon  as  practical,  for  a  Chinese  ship  arrived  when  we  were 
at  Tehuantepec,  and  insisted  on  discharging  her  cargo, 
although  assured  that  the  Isthmus  route  was  not  then  ready 
to  deal  with  heavy  traffic.  When  completed  every  modern 
facility  for  the  cheap  and  quick  handling  of  freight  will 
be  provided. 

The  Tehuantepec  Isthmus  has  several  advantages  : 
primarily  it  is  the  shorter  route.  This  shortening  of 
mileao-e  is  one  of  the  dominatino-  factors  that  ensures 
success.  It  may  be  well  to  mention  here  that  Tehuan- 
tepec is  1,300  miles  north  of  Panama  and  800  miles  north 
of  Nicarao'ua,  and  has  therefore  reduced  on  the  Pacific 
Ocean  alone  the  distance  between  all  Atlantic  and  Northern 
Pacific  ports  by  those  considerable  figures,  while  on  the 
Atlantic  side  the  saving,  though  not  so  great,  is  also 
considerable. 

The  followincy  table  shows  the   Q-ain  in   mileaq-e  between 


THE   ISTHMUS   OF  TEHUANTEPEC.  429 

certain    points    by    the     Tehuantepec     Railway    over   the 
Panama  route  : — 


Via   Panama. 

Via 

Tehuantepec. 

Gain  of  Mileage 

Plymouth  to  San  Francisco 

9>oi3 

7,767 

1,336 

New  York  ,,             ,, 

6,270 

5,005 

1,265 

New  Orleans  to        ,, 

5,596 

3.5S6 

2,010 

Liverpool  to  Yokohama 

14,540 

13-455 

1,085 

New  York           ,, 

11,256 

10,006 

1,250 

New  Orleans      ,, 

10,611 

8,637 

1,974 

New  York  and  Manilla    . 

12,602 

",563 

1,039 

To  realise  the  distances  it  is  well  to  remember  that  it  is 
only  about  3,000  miles  from  England  to  New  York.  From 
New  Orleans  via  Tehuantepec  to  San  Francisco  is  2,000 
miles  less  than  by  Panama,  which  is  a  saving  of  two-thirds 
of  the  distance  from  England  to  New  York.  Coatza- 
coalcos,  which  is  the  Atlantic  terminus  of  the  Tehuantepec 
route  and  800  miles  south  of  New  Orleans,  is,  strange  as  it 
may  seem,  nearer  to  San  Francisco  by  the  new  route  than 
is  New  Orleans  via  the  Southern  Pacific  Railway,  which 
is  the  usual  mode  of  travel. 

The  Tehuantepec  Railway  charge  from  ship's  side  to 
ship's  side  will,  it  is  expected,  not  exceed  sixteen  shillings 
per  ton,  and  the  Pacific  Ocean  part  of  the  journey  to  San 
Francisco  will  probably  cost  ten  shillings  a  ton,  making 
a  total  charge  for  freight  of  twenty-six  shillings  a  ton  from 
Coatzacoalcos,  on  the  Gulf  of  Mexico,  to  San  Francisco. 
The  United  States  Railways  charge  about  sixty  shillings 
a  ton,  from  ocean  to  ocean,  which  is  only  about  a  farthing 
a  ton  per  mile.  The  Panama  rates  are,  roughly  speaking, 
twenty  shillings  a  ton.  If,  therefore,  the  Tehuantepec 
route  carries  freight  from  ship's  side  to  ship's  side  for  sixteen 
shillings  per  ton,  the  saving  to  shippers  over  the  Panama 
route  will  be  fully  four  shillings  a  ton  in  railway  freight 
alone,  and  from  1,265  ^o  2,010  miles  sea  freight  on  all 
North  Pacific  trade  ;  whilst  the  saving  over  the  ail-rail 
freights  will  be  thirty  per  cent.,  or  one-third,  of  the  price 
of  the  trans-continental  lines. 


430 


MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 


The  Tehuantepec  route  is  undoubtedly  the  most  Im- 
portant scheme  in  Mexico  to-day,  hence  these  details. 

We  had  a  special  train  for  the  inspection  trip,  and 
travelling  under  such  circumstances  is  a  luxury.  First  of 
all  was  an  engine  with  its  cow-catcher  in  front,  and  all  the 
latest  improvements.  Then  the  servants'  accommodation, 
followed  by  the  kitchen,  where  the  cooking  had  to  be  done 
for  sixteen  people  requiring  three  meals  a  day,  with  a  few- 
extra  guests  thrown  in,  as  generally  two  or  three  district 
engineers  joined  our  family  party.  Then  came  the  dining- 
room.  This  was  not  so  luxurious  as  a  Pullman,  as  it  was  only 
improvised  for  the  occasion.  What  is  called  a  box-car,  that 
is  to  say,  a  shut-in  van  for  freight,  had  been  painted  and 
done  up,  extra  canvas  roofs  added,  and  windows  knocked 
in  at  the  sides.  The  result  was  excellent,  for  it  allowed 
a  lone  narrow  table  at  which  we  could  all  sit  with  comfort, 
a  rude  sideboard  at  the  end  where  cold  viands  for  hungry 
men  stood  in  rows,  and  plenty  of  room  for  the  darkie 
porters  to  move  about.  Beyond  this  was  another  box-car, 
fitted  up  with  bed-rooms,  just  like  little  cabins.  It  must  be 
understood  that  the  Tehuantepec  line  is  from  ocean  to 
ocean,  and  it  is  therefore  not  joined  by  any  other  branch 
whatsoever,  consequently  every  car  or  engine  has  to  be 
brought  by  sea,  or  made  on  the  Isthmus.  In  other  places  it 
would  be  quite  easy  to  procure  ordinary  carriages  and  just 
run  them  along  the  already  existing  lines  ;  however,  more 
resource  and  enterprise  is  required  where  such  means  of 
transport  do  not  exist. 

In  these  ingenious  cabins  the  engineers  of  the  party 
slept.  Beyond  was  the  drawing-room  of  the  train,  namely, 
Sir  Weetman  Pearson's  own  car.  This  had  been  brought 
by  sea  from  Vera  Cruz  to  Coatzacoalcos,  and  I  understand 
great  difficulty  was  experienced  in  getting  such  an  enormous 
structure  on  to  the  deck  of  the  ship  ! 

Verily  it  was  a  charming  abode.     At  the  far  end  was  the 


THE   ISTHMUS   OF   TEHUANTEPEC.  431 

observation  drawinof-room  with  its  cflass  windows  and 
balcony,  over  which  fell  a  striped  awning.  The  drawing- 
room  at  night  was  metamorphosised  into  a  chamber  with 
four  beds,  partitioned  by  curtains,  in  which  Sir  Weetman, 
General  Mena  and  others  slept,  as  they  kindly  gave  me 
the  state  bedroom,  quite  a  palatial  little  place  with  a  brass 
bedstead  and  a  bath  ! 

The  Mexicans  of  the  party  usually  played  cards  every 
evening,  for  apparently  the  Mexican  cannot  live  without 
this  excitement,  while  Sir  Weetman,  surrounded  by  maps 
and  charts,  figures  and  facts,  discussed  millions  of  pounds 
or  centavos  of  copper  with  his  Staff. 

Our  train  pulled  up  when  necessary,  that  we  might 
examine  some  culvert  or  bridge,  or,  when  requisite,  in- 
spect a  pit  of  ballast.  At  interesting  places  we  stayed  for 
hours,  and  over  the  less  picturesque  tracts  sped  on  our 
way  by  night.  This  was  the  perfection  of  comfort  while 
travelling,  and  I  am  afraid  that  I  was  spoilt  in  "  Mexico 
as  I  saw  it." 

Tehuantepec  is  in  the  tropics.  It  lies  in  the  most 
southern  corner  of  Mexico,  bordering  on  Yucatan,  and  is 
the  narrowest  point  of  land  between  the  two  great  oceans. 
The  Tehuantepec  Railway,  which  is  but  one  hundred  and 
ninety  miles  long  and  the  highest  point  of  which  only 
reaches  seven  hundred  and  fifty  feet,  runs  due  north  and 
south  ;  at  one  end  is  Coatzacoalcos,  at  the  other  Salina 
Cruz,  near  the  town  of  Tehuantepec.  Coatzacoalcos,  until 
lately,  was  little  more  than  a  village.  It  is  beautifully 
situated  at  the  mouth  of  a  fine  river  of  the  same  name, 
which  runs  into  the  Gulf  of  Mexico.  This  river  is 
navigable  for  seventy  miles,  and  at  the  town  itself  is  a 
quarter  of  a  mile  broad,  where  it  forms  a  fine  natural 
harbour  ;  but,  unfortunately,  the  bar  has  until  now  been  a 
great  obstacle,  as  only  ships  of  limited  draught — fifteen 
feet — could  cross  it. 


432  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

All  this  is  being  changed.  Jetties,  nine  hundred  feet 
apart,  on  much  the  same  principles  as  at  Tampico,  and 
at  the  mouth  of  the  Mississippi,  are  now  in  course  of 
construction  ;  which,  by  confining  the  water  into  a 
narrow  space,  will  scour  away  the  bar,  and  eventually 
allow  large  ocean  vessels  to  enter  at  any  season.  These 
jetties  will  always  maintain  between  thirty  and  forty  feet  of 
water  in  the  channel.  The  new  quays  along  the  river 
banks  are  to  be  two-thirds  of  a  mile  long,  so  that  eight 
large  ships  can  discharge  at  the  same  time.  Parts  of  these 
quays  are  already  finished,  and  look  most  substantial  and 
business-like.  Fine  offices  are  being  erected  at  the  back, 
and  quite  an  important  town  seems  likely  to  develop 
rapidly. 

But,  in  the  meantime,  although  it  has  doubled  itself  during 
the  last  two  years — the  population  to-day  being  over  five 
thousand — it  is  still  a  funny,  primitive  little  place.  For- 
merly, anyone  who  bought  a  piece  of  land  built  a  house 
after  his  own  idea,  and  the  result  of  this  want  of  system 
was  naturally  of  an  "anyhow"  description.  The  streets 
were  of  sand  without  any  attempt  at  paving  or  draining, 
and  the  little  wooden  houses  most  insanitary.  The 
Government  of  Mexico,  however,  is  rapidly  altering  all 
this,  and  also  at  the  port  of  Salina  Cruz  on  the  Pacific 
Slope.  They  have  acquired  houses  and  land  in  both 
places,  and  are  building  entirely  new  towns,  properly 
planned  and  thoroughly  drained.  They  are  also  institut- 
ing splendid  water  supplies,  so  that  Coatzacoalcos  and 
Salina  Cruz  will,  it  is  expected,  shortly  be  exempt  from 
yellow  fever,  and  other  tropical  ills.  Indeed,  the  Govern- 
ment is  sparing  neither  pains  nor  money  in  making  both 
towns  thoroughly  healthy,  and,  by  starting  on  such  scientific 
and  sanitary  lines,  they  are  almost  sure  of  success  ;  at  all 
events  they  deserve  it.  I  was  on  the  Isthmus  at  the 
beginning  of   the  hot  season  when   yellow  fever   is   at   its 


THE   ISTHMUS    OF   TEHUANTEPEC.  433 

worst,   but   I   only  heard   of   three  victims   to  that    terrible 
scourge. 

A  movement  is  being  made  at  the  present  moment  to 
investigate  yellow  fever  among  other  tropical  diseases  ; 
but  Universities  are  always  poor,  and  an  opportunity  awaits 
any  wide-minded  millionaire,  who  is  willing  to  expend 
some  thousands  of  pounds  for  the  good  of  humanity. 
Such  a  generous  act  would  benefit  the  whole  human  race, 
for  yellow  fever  is  one  of  the  greatest  scourges  of  the 
earth. 

If  once  yellow  fever  were  eradicated,  hundreds  of  sea- 
ports in  tropical  lands  would  be  opened  to  the  world  as 
desirable  residential  homes. 

I  was  greatly  struck  with  the  country  between  the  two 
coasts.  Eight  or  ten  feet  of  soil  is  common,  and  anything 
and  everything  seems  to  grow.  On  the  Pacific  Slope  the 
climate  is  dry,  but  on  the  Gulf  side  it  is  wet.  The 
Isthmus,  for  a  tropical  land,  is  considered  healthy,  by 
reason  of  the  fresh  current  of  air  always  blowing  from 
one  ocean  to  the  other.  Entering  the  town  of  Tehuantepec 
the  railway  runs  through  the  chief  street.  This  town,  to 
which  the  Isthmus  owes  its  name,  is  extremely  picturesque. 
Strangers  are  almost  unknown,  and  many  quaint  habits, 
customs,  and  costumes  still  remain.  Strange  to  say,  how- 
ever, in  this  very  un-up-to-date,  far-away  spot,  "  women's 
rights"  are  undisputed!  Ninety  per  cent,  of  the  trade  is 
done  by  women,  and  a  wife  has  to  vouch  for  her  husband 
before  he  can  even  get  credit!  Indeed,  woman  reigns 
supreme.  The  market-place  presents  a  curious  spectacle  ; 
hardly  a  man  is  to  be  seen  ;  in  fact,  cutlery  seems  to  be  the 
only  trade  he  is  allowed  to  ply.  Not  only  do  the  women 
predominate  in  business,  but  they  prove  beyond  all  doubt, 
that  because  a  woman  can  earn  a  livelihood,  it  is  not 
necessary  for  her  to  be  either  ugly  or  mis-shapen.  On  the 
contrary,   the  women   of  Tehuantepec    are    remarkable  for 

28 


434  MEXICO   AS   I  SAIV  IT. 

their  beauty  of  face  and  form.  Dark-skinned  with  glorious 
soft  eyes  and  masses  of  wavy  black  hair,  they  possess 
exquisite  features  and  lovely  teeth.  They  are  the  most 
beautiful  women  in  Mexico,  and  their  carriage  at  once 
attracts  attention.  Small  in  stature,  they  are  fine  in  limb  ; 
in  fact,  the  girls  of  Tehuantepec  seem  born  models  for  an 
artist. 

A  ball  in  the  market-place  at  Tehuantepec  town  is  a 
wonderful  sight.  The  women  wear  a  quaint  head-dress, 
called  huepil,  which  is  composed  of  coarse  white  lace,  and 
can  be  utilised  in  three  different  ways.  At  a.  dance  it  is 
wound  about  the  neck  and  stands  out  all  round  like  a  huge 
Elizabethan  ruff.  In  church  it  is  put  on  the  head,  some- 
thing like  a  Boulogne  fishwife's  cap,  only  that  it  is  larger, 
while  for  ordinary  wear  the  huepil  is  simply  laid  on  the 
hair,  and  folds  of  lace  hang  down  the  back.  It  seems  a 
curious  form  of  head-dress  to  a  stranger,  but  is  neverthe- 
less becoming,  although  it  affords  little  or  no  protection 
from  the  sun. 

The  feet  of  the  richest  Tehuanatepecana  are  invariably 
bare,  even  at  a  ball ;  but  she  makes  up  in  jewellery  for 
what  she  omits  in  foot  covering,  and  her  chains,  rich  gems, 
gold  and  silver  ornaments  are  marvellous  to  behold.  On 
such  occasions  the  wealthy  ladies  wear  the  huepil  made  of 
gold  lace. 

These  olive-skinned  queens  of  the  tropics  are  indeed 
beautiful.  They  are  full  of  grace,  and  dance  exceedingly 
well. 

A  short  distance  from  Tehuantepec  is  the  sea-port  of 
Salina  Cruz.  So  curious  is  the  position  of  this  tropical  bay, 
running  as  it  does  exactly  east  and  west,  that  the  sun  rises 
in  the  sea  and  sets  in  the  sea  each  day  during  the  greater 
part  of  the  year.  It  is  here  that  the  most  important  harbour 
works  are  in  progress.  An  English  inland  clock,  fifty  acres 
in  extent,  is  being  built,  planned  in   such  a  way  that  its  size 


THE   ISTHMUS   OF   TEHUANTEPEC.  435 

can  be  doubled  should  necessity  arise.  Even  at  low  tide 
there  will  be  thirty-three  feet  of  water,  thereby  providing 
for  the  increased  draught  of  vessels  that  may  be  expected 
in  the  future.  Salina  Cruz  harbour  will  easily  accommodate 
a  million  tons  of  shipping  annually,  and  is  shielded  by  the 
hills  from  the  prevailing  storms  known  as  "  northers."  A 
protecting  breakwater  is  being  built  of  stone,  covered  with 
blocks  of  concrete  weighing  forty  tons.  This  breakwater 
will  be  nearly  three-quarters  of  a  mile  in  length,  and  is  being 
formed  by  a  monster  crane  called  a  "  Titan,"  which  lifts 
with  ease  blocks  of  fifty  tons  weight  and  deposits  them  in 
the  sea.  The  dock,  like  the  quays  at  Coatzacoalcos,  is 
being  fitted  with  the  most  up-to-date  machinery  for  the 
discharge  of  vessels,  so  that  in  minimum  number  of  hours 
cargo  may  be  dispatched  to  the  opposite  coast.  The  present 
little  village  stands  on  the  site  of  the  former  dock,  and  is 
being  swept  away  to  be  replaced  by  a  modern  town  now 
being  built  on  the  rising  ground  near  the  harbour. 

The  train  passes  for  miles  and  miles  through  a  vast 
acreage  of  primeval  forest,  a  sort  of  jungle  of  every  kind 
of  tropical  tree  and  shrub,  intermixed  with  palms  of 
various  kinds. 

At  certain  seasons  of  the  year  Mexican  Indians  live 
entirely  on  the  wild  produce  of  the  forest.  Natives  find 
bananas,  pine-apples,  cocoa-nuts,  and  dozens  of  tropical 
fruits,  such  as  Manila  mango,  anona,  aguacate,  sapote 
grande,  and  a  variety  of  plums  unknown  in  England.  They 
can  shoot  with  their  blow-guns  game  enough  to  supply 
their  larder,  and  being  lazy,  prefer  to  live  by  the  chase 
rather  than  on  the  results  of  their  work. 

The  Isthmus  is  the  native  home  of  maize,  which  under 
cultivation  yields  two  crops  annually,  each  averaging  sixty 
bushels  to  the  acre.  It  sometimes  happens  that  a  sower 
and  a  reaper  may  be  seen  working  in  the  same  field  at  the 
same  time. 

28* 


436 


MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 


Large  quantities  of  maize  are  exported  from  Mexico,  as 
may  be  seen  from  the  table  below  : — 


Quantity. 

Articles. 

1S97. 

1898. 

1899. 

Lbs. 

Lbs. 

Lbs. 

Rice 

Wheat    ... 

817,920 

2,392,648 
10,449,288 

762,908 
226,765 

Wheat  Flour 
Maize 
Barley     . . . 

78,775 
2,543.174 

7,041,400 

11,160,611 

5,663,926 

6,750 

1,413,481 

35,779,000 

There  are  sixty  different  kinds  of  humming-birds,  most  of 
whom  can  be  found  on  the  Isthmus,  but  although  beautiful 
of  plumage,  they  do  not  really  sing. 

Mexican  coffee  is  rapidly  coming  into  notice,  and  selling 
yearly  in  large  quantities.  The  coffee  export  in  189S  was 
380,714  cwt.,  and  in  1899,  357,113  cwt.  Everyone  drinks 
coffee,  therefore  the  probable  production  is  something  like 
10,000,000  cwt.  per  annumi.  Mexican  coffee  is  about  the 
finest  in  the  world.  Report  says  the  Emperor  of  Germany 
drinks  nothing  else.  It  grows  to  perfection  on  the  Isthmus, 
where  it  is  also  found  wild. 

The  cacao  bean  is  likewise  indigenous,  and  from  that,  of 
course,  chocolate  is  made.  Even  in  the  old  Aztec  days 
chocolate  was  a  favourite  beverage.  The  Isthmus  is  claimed 
as  the  natural  home  of  rubber,  and  large  areas  are  now 
under  cultivation,  Mexican  rubber  is  worth  about  eighty 
cents  (gold)  per  lb.,  and  a  good  tree  yields  from  two  to  four 
pounds  annually  when  from  eight  to  twelve  years  old.  It 
is  computed  that  a  rubber  forest  of  1,000  acres,  containing 
250  trees  to  the  acre,  ought  to  yield  250,000  dollars  profit, 
or  a  dollar  a  tree  annually.  Large  tracts  of  country  are 
already  under  cultivation  ;  but  the  greater  portion  remains 
to  be  cleared.  Although  there  is  still  a  wild  primitive 
charm  about  the  place,  there  are  something  like  a  hundred 


THE   ISTHMUS   OF  TEHUANTEPEC.  437 

thousand  inhabitants  scattered  along  the  sea-ports,  rivers, 
and  railroads.  In  fact,  from  three  to  four  thousand  people 
are  at  present  employed  merely  on  the  new  route. 

As  far  as  agricultural  production  goes,  Tehuantepec  is  a 
veritable  Paradise,  and  were  it  not  for  the  dangers  to  health 
which  always  accompany  life  in  a  tropical  climate,  it  would 
be  a  veritable  Garden  of  Eden  ;  and  as  before  mentioned, 
Mr.  Le  Plonchon  declares  the  true  Garden  of  Eden  was 
in  Yucatan,  close  by.  The  climate  is  equable  ;  there  are 
winter  and  summer  months,  the  rains  falling  during  the 
latter  season,  but  spring  and  autumn  are  unknown.  My 
visit  was  in  the  beginning  of  the  hot  weather  ;  the  ther- 
mometer was  about  loo  F.  deo-rees  in  the  shade  ;  but  the 
heat  did  not  seem  overpowering,  the  mornings  and  evenings 
were  so  lovely.  One  of  the  greatest  products  is  sugar. 
Like  coffee,  it  o-rows  wild,  but  when  under  cultivation  the 
cane  frequently  has  twenty-eight  joints,  and  reaches  a 
diameter  of  two  or  three  inches.  Rice  often  yields  two 
crops  without  any  re-sowing  or  attention.  Cotton  does  well 
in  parts,  and  pine-apples  flourish.  I  was  told  the  latter 
sometimes  weigh  as  much  as  15  lbs.  each.  We  saw  acres 
and  acres  of  them  growing  wild  along  the  side  of  the  track. 

On  our  return  trip,  before  we  rejoined  our  large  steamer, 
I  had  rather  an  interesting  experience.  In  consequence  of 
the  lowness  of  the  water — for  the  anticipated  summer  rains 
had  not  yet  arrived — we  did  not  accomplish  the  journey 
back  to  San  Nicolas  in  one  day,  and  as  we  were  unable 
to  travel  at  night,  and  our  whole  party  of  sixteen  could  not 
possibly  sleep  on  that  small  deck,  we  managed  to  anchor  near 
an  hacienda.  This  grand  farm  had  five  beds  to  offer,  and 
accordingly  five  of  us  went  off"  to  sleep  on  shore.  It  was  a  real 
Southern  Mexican  farm,  and  therefore  merits  description. 

We  had  dined  on  board,  to  the  accompaniment  ot  a 
village  band  on  the  bank,  and  enjoyed  our  meal  before  an 
audience  composed  of  the   inhabitants  of  the  entire   village. 


438  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

About  nine  p.m.,  escorted  by  ship's  lanterns,  we  scrambled 
up  the  bank  to  our  shore  house.  A  railing  surrounded  the 
garden,  on  which  were  roosting  dozens  of  black  birds  with 
white  tips  to  their  wings  ;  these  were  zopilotes  or  buzzards. 
They  are  the  scavengers  of  Mexico,  and  are  protected  by 
law.  It  is  believed  they  have  no  sense  of  smell,  and  as 
they  cannot  see  prey  at  night,  they  merely  sit  and  wait  till 
dawn.  What  a  size  they  are !  Almost  as  big  as  turkeys  ; 
and  how  they  pounce  clown  on  a  dead  animal  and  tear  it  to 
shreds  !  Horrible  stories  are  told.  It  is  said  that  if  a  man 
be  dying,  these  buzzards  will  hover  round  the  house  for  hours. 
Instinct  tells  them  death  is  at  hand  ;  so  that  when  they  flock 
near  a  dwelling  where  there  is  illness  the  natives  do  not  try 
to  do  any  more  for  their  sick  friend,  and  will  even  go  so  far 
as  to  prepare  for  his  funeral  before  life  departs  if  the  buzzards 
persistently  remain. 

The  "  death  signals  "  did  not  move  as  we  approached, 
they  barely  lifted  their  heads.  We  crossed  the  garden,  in 
which,  strange  to  say,  many  beautiful  flowers  were  growing 
— the  chatelaine  of  the  house  prided  herself  on  her  garden  ; 
the  beds  had  been  enclosed  with  brick  or  stone  for  purposes 
of  irrigation,  and  she  watered  and  tended  the  plants  herself. 
The  result  was  highly  satisfactory,  and  before  I  left  the 
following  morning  she  kindly  presented  me  with  some  lovely 
roses.  As  a  rule  no  care  is  taken  of  gardens  in  Mexico,  for 
so  many  orchids,  palms  and  flowers  grow  wild  outside,  people 
do  not  care  to  water  plants  inside  their  fence  ;  therefore 
artificial  flowers  are  more  often  found  in  houses  than  real 
ones,  simply  because  the  real  die  so  quickly  in  those  sultry 
lands,  and  the  others  give  less  trouble. 

A  wide  balcony  ran  right  round  that  big  rambling  house, 
and  on  to  it  opened  large  green-shuttered  doors  from  the 
rooms.  They  had  no  windows,  not  a  single  pane  of  glass  was 
there  in  that  large  building  ;  one  door  opened  on  to  the  court- 
yard or  patio,  the  other  on  to  the  balcony,  and  all  through  the 


THE   ISTHMUS    OF   TEHUANTEPEC.  439 

day  both  doors  stood  wide,  while  Hght  and  air  were  admitted 
through  these  apertures,  but  at  night  everything  was  closed. 

At  the  front  entrance,  drawn  up  in  two  lines  along  the 
balcony,  were  rows  of  chairs.  On  one  side  sat  the  lady  of 
the  house  and  all  her  women-folk,  hand-maidens  and 
children ;  on  the  other  side  was  the  Ranchero  with  his 
followers.  All  rose  to  greet  us  as  we  entered,  but  everyone, 
including  the  lady,  continued  to  smoke  a  long  cigar.  A 
couple  of  trestle  beds  had  been  put  up  for  some  of  our  party 
in  the  brick-floored  hall  ;  in  the  room  beyond  two  neat  little 
cots  had  been  prepared,  with  clean  white  mosquito  curtains, 
and  I  was  allotted  an  adjacent  room  to  myself.  It  had  three 
doors,  not  one  of  which  boasted  a  bolt. 

We  all  bowed,  we  all  shook  hands,  the  proficient  Spanish 
scholars  or  Mexicans  of  the  party  chatted  pleasantly,  and 
finally,  with  the  aid  of  a  lamp,  I  retired  to  bed.  The  room 
was  large,  and  my  bed  was  enveloped  in  a  mosquito  net 
although  there  were  no  mosquitos.  Mattress  there  was 
none,  but  a  plaited  grass  mat  was  swung  on  the  wooden 
trestles  from  side  to  side,  somewhat  resembling  a  stretched- 
out  hammock.  These  grass  mats  are  common  in  hot  lands  ; 
they  are  cool,  pliable  and  clean,  and  although  a  little  hard 
for  unaccustomed  elbows,  they  are  really  quite  nice  and 
sensible.  Sheets  there  were  none,  only  a  couple  of  red 
blankets  in  case  the  night  grew  chilly  and  a  pillow  in  a  fine 
linen  case.  At  the  other  end  of  the  room  was  a  large  old- 
fashioned  four-post  bed  ;  but  it  had  no  bottom,  and  its 
frame  was  used  to  support  sacks  of  potatoes,  one  of  which 
having  burst,  its  contents  were  lying  on  the  brick  floor. 
The  owners  of  the  house  were  well-to-do  people,  yet  the 
enamelled  tin  basin  stood  on  an  old  box,  and  even  at  the 
bedside  there  was  no  carpet.  I  opened  a  door  leading  on 
to  the  patio  before  going  to  bed,  for  the  potatoes  made  their 
presence  known  by  their  odour,  but  I  did  not  like  to  open 
that    on    the  verandah  in    case  a  wild-cat,   lion,  jaguar,   or 


440.^     --.  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

leopard  should  take  a  fancy  to  walk  into  my  room,  for  these 
beasts  still  wander  at  large.  I  looked  carefully  for  a  scorpion, 
for  it  seemed  just  the  place  to  find  one,  but  as  nothing  more 
venomous  than  a  spider  the  size  of  a  dollar-piece  appeared, 
I  dived  behind  my  curtains  and  slept. 

Before  daylight  we  were  up.  Three  whistles  from  our 
steamer  was  the  signal  to  get  ready,  and  when  I  emerged 
from  my  spacious  chamber  I  found  the  entire  household  had 
resumed  their  seats  in  rows  upon  the  balcony  to  formally 
bid  us  good-bye.  The  lady  was  smoking  again,  and  some 
were  engaged  in  busily  rolling  the  green  tobacco  on  their 
knees  into  cigars.  But — and  this  was  really  amazing — a 
little  boy  not  quite  three  years  old  was  busily  puffing  away 
at  a  large  cigar  !  Yes,  such  small  children  are  allowed  to 
smoke  !  This  infantile  person,  two  years  and  ten  months 
old,  seemed  to  thoroughly  enjoy  his  weed,  which  was  at 
least  eig-ht  inches  lono-. 

It  was  extraordinary  to  see  a  full-sized  cigar  in  his  baby 
mouth,  yet  he  puffed  at  it  most  professionally,  while  in  his 
left  hand  he  held  a  banana  from  which  he  took  bites 
between  the  puffs,  occasionally  stopping  to  play  with  a 
small  mongrel  puppy  ! 

"  Does  he  often  smoke  ?  "  I  asked  the  mother,  in  amaze- 
ment. 

"  Si,  Sefiora,  he  smokes  three  or  four  cigars  a  day  ;  all 
our  children  have  done  so  at  that  age." 

"  Does  he  ever  let  it  out  ? "   I  asked. 

"  No,  never,"  replied  his  fond  mamma,  "  he  would  con- 
sider that  a  disgrace.  He  lights  it  himself,  and  smokes  it 
through." 

Adaptability  of  temperament  to  climate  ! 

The  child  looked  perfectly  well  and  chubby,  as  he  ate 
bananas  in  the  intervals  of  smoking  ;  it  apparently  did  not 
interfere  with  his  appetite.  It  was  a  tobacco  hacienda, 
and   much  of  the  produce  went  by  river  to  Alvarado,  and 


THE   ISTHMUS   OF   TEHUANTEPEC.  441 

thence  to   England   by   sea,  where  it  is  probably  sold  as  the 
best  Havanah  ! 

The  estimated  production  of  tobacco  in  Mexico  was  : — In 
1898,  /i7,o54,828. 

The  revolution  in  the  island  of  Cuba  has  served  as  an 
impulse  to  the  tobacco  industry  on  the  Isthmus,  and  the 
growers  have  extended  their  plantations,  especially  in  the 
southern  part  of  the  Republic,  with  the  result  that  the 
exports  in  1898  were  nearly  double  those  of  1897,  and  were 
destined  for  the  markets  of  Germany,  France,  Belgium  and 
New  York. 

On  the  Isthmus  as  everywhere  else  in  Mexico,  the  better 
class  people  are  of  Spanish  origin,  and  Spanish  is  their 
language.  The  natives  are  of  Indian  descent,  mostly  of 
the  Zapotec  tribe,  the  same  people  who  are  supposed  to 
have  built  the  magnificent  ancient  temples  of  Mitla,  w^hich 
lie  only  one  hundred  miles  north  of  Tehuantepec.  How 
glad  I  was  I  had  not  attempted  to  ride  that  hundred  miles, 
for  my  illness  would  have  overtaken  me  on  the  way,  and  "  a 
hundred  miles  from  everywhere  "  would  have  proved  more 
disastrous  even  than  those  bites  actually  did — and  they  were 
bad  enough,  in  all  conscience  !  What  a  pity  tropical  lands 
have  such  drawbacks  ! 

The  Indians  are  a  fine  people  as  a  rule,  lazy  and  indolent 
like  all  Southern  peoples,  and  yet  on  occasions  they  will 
travel  fifty  miles  per  diem  on  foot  through  the  mountains, 
and  keep  that  pace  up  for  days  together.  They  can  carry 
great  weights  on  their  heads — a  hundred  to  a  hundred  and 
fifty  pounds  being  quite  a  usual  load.  In  some  parts  of  the 
Isthmus  they  have  a  curious  fashion  of  tying  weights  to  the 
horses'  tails,  which  the  animals  drag  without  any  apparent 
trouble  along  the  mountain  tracks. 

Labour,  as  we  have  seen,  is  a  great  difficulty  in  Mexico. 
The  Indian  in  the  south  seems  to  have  even  less  ambition 
than  his  brother  in  the  north  ;  he  lives  on  little  or  nothing, 


442  MEXICO   AS   I  SAJJ^  IT. 

he  does  not  want  to  save,  so  he  only  works  when  he 
actually  wants  money,  and  never  on  ?i  fiesta  or  saint's  day,  of 
which  there  seems  an  endless  number  in  the  country. 

The  Indian  peon's  soul  has  never  expanded;  dwarfed  at 
birth,  he  is  narrowed  by  habit  until  his  mind  has  become  so 
vacant  that  he  does  not  own  one  thought  to  rub  against 
another.  Hugging  superstition,  and  the  art  of  idleness, 
which  he  understands  full  well,  are  his  only  joys.  He 
must  have  intuitive  knowledge  of  Robert  Louis  Stevenson's 
"  Apology  for  Idlers."  Stevenson  gave  a  smiling  boy  a 
coin  for  his  cheerfulness  and  happy  expression !  He 
would  not  have  required  to  disburse  many  such  coins 
among  the  Mexican  Indians,  but  they  know  how  to  love 
passionately. 

It  is  a  daily  occurrence  for  a  man  or  woman  to  go  to  a  drug 
store  and  ask  for  a  "  love  potion,'"  just  as  was  done  in  the 
days  of  Juliet  ;  they  drink  the  draught,  and  pay  their  centa- 
vos,  happy  in  the  belief  that  their  sweetheart  will  return  their 
affection. 

There  is  another  beautiful  many-coloured  bird  in  Mexico 
called  Chupa-mirto,  the  first  word  meaning  suction,  the 
second  a  flower.  One  day  on  a  country  road  we  saw  a 
man  fondlino-  a  little  dead  bird,  but  when  he  found  we  were 
watching  him,  he  opened  his  cotton  shirt  and  placed  it  inside, 
next  his  heart. 

"  Ah,  that  is  a  common  superstition,"  said  a  friend.  "  The 
Indians  think  so  long  as  they  carry  a  Chupa-mirto  next  their 
skin,  the  man  or  woman  they  love  cannot  play  them  false. 
If  they  are  enamoured  with  someone  who  does  not  care  for 
them,  they  think  they  will  win  the  love  by  keeping  the  bird 
next  their  heart." 

It  is  a  pretty  bird,  and  a  pretty  superstition. 

All  Indians  are  afraid  of  the  evil  eye  ;  but  they  do  not 
paint  a  hand  upon  their  houses,  as  do  the  people  in  Morocco, 
to  protect  them  against  misfortunes. 


THE   ISTHMUS    OF   TEHUANTEPEC.  443 

They  also  fear  the  cry  of  the  owl.  A  popular  saying  is 
that  "the  owl  is  the  Indian's  enemy,"  and  when  he  cries  a 
Mexican  dies. 

The  deer  is  no  longer  respected,  he  is  killed  for  his  skin  ; 
but  in  the  time  of  the  Spanish  invasion  the  deer  was  as 
sacred  an  animal  in  Mexico  as  the  bull  is  in  India  to-day, 
and  no  one  ever  shot  one  of  the  pretty  creatures.  That 
superstition  has  died  out. 

Of  course  there  are  witches,  as  already  noticed  ;  but  one 
very  common  practice  is  to  get  them  to  make  a  love  effigy. 
For  example,  if  a  girl  is  in  love,  and  the  object  of  her 
affection  jilts  her  and  marries  another  girl,  the  first  love 
goes  off  to  the  nearest  witch.  Together  they  make  an 
effigy  in  r_ags — not  clay  or  wax,  but  rags  when  it  is  a  love 
case — and  having  painted  his  face  and  dressed  him  up  as 
near  to  life  as  they  can  (although  the  one  I  saw  resembled 
nothing  in  heaven  or  earth),  they  put  pins  into  his  vital 
parts,  his  heart,  his  lungs,  his  stomach  or  his  head,  singing 
a  weird  incantation  the  while.  If  the  Fates  are  kind  the 
unfaithful  lover  soon  afterwards  sickens  at  one  of  these 
points,  pines  aw^ay  and  dies. 

Such  then  are  the  people.  The  possibilities  of  the 
Isthmus  itself  may  be  gathered  from  this  sketchy  account 
of  the  land  and  its  yield.  It  must  be  remembered  that 
there  have  been  greater  battles  than  Waterloo,  yet  none 
have  perhaps  so  affected  human  destiny.  There  are  greater 
railroads  than  Tehuantepec,  but  none  are  likely  so  com- 
pletely to  change  the  course  of  the  world's  commerce  than 
this  short  route. 

Up  till  now  it  remains  practically  virgin  country,  so  little 
has  been  done  for  its  development  ;  but  with  the  opening- 
up  of  this  great  Isthmus  route  matters  must  rapidly  change. 
Capital  will  flow  into  the  country,  enterprise  will  arise, 
and  in  a  few  years  all  will  be  different.  With  the  march  of 
civilisation,  hospitals  and  ice-making  machines  are  already 


444  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

being  put  up  in  the  towns,  so  really  the  Isthmus  is  becoming 
quite  up-to-date ! 

The  Tehuantepec  route  will  be  shorter  and  cheaper  than 
those  already  in  existence.  In  addition  to  its  through 
traffic,  its  local  freight  will  be  considerable,  for  it  practically 
opens  up  a  new  tropical  country,  able  to  produce  abundantly 
and  distribute  economically,  for  which  reasons  it  promises, 
humanly  speaking,  to  prove  a  great  success. 

We  were  a  very  jolly  party  on  that  Tehuantepec  trip. 
I  had  learned  that  champagne  was  more  easily  procured 
than  milk,  and  foie  gras  than  bread !  It  was  a  journey  full 
of  interest,  a  journey  into  an  almost  unknown  land  as  far  as 
civilised  visitors  go,  and  yet  we  had  a  chef  and  a  butler  ; 
but,  alas !  like  all  the  good  things  of  life  it  drew  only  too 
quickly  to  a  close. 

We  had  seen  the  Isthmus,  and  after  bidding  a  farewell  to 
Coatzacoalcos  turned  north  again.  What  a  journey  lay 
before  me  !  Something  like  nine  days  and  nights  on  the 
cars  intervened  between  me  and  New  York!  From  whence 
that  marvellous  ship  the  Oceanic  was  destined  to  bear  me 
home  to  England. 

Vera  Cruz  was  en  fete  when  we  arrived.  March,  1901, 
was  the  three  hundredth  anniversary  of  the  founding  of  that 
seaport. 

Military  and  civic  parades  were  held,  sports,  serenades, 
balls,  fireworks  and  banquets.  Perhaps  the  prettiest  of 
all  was  the  children's  ball,  or  for  fine  spectacular  effect  the 
Venetian  festival  in  the  Harbour,  when  every  ship  was 
lighted.  Vera  Cruz  was  truly  en  fete.  We  were  smothered 
with  confetti  ;  poles,  flags,  streamers  and  decorations  orna- 
mented every  dwelling,  and  the  three  hundredth  anniver- 
sary will  long  be  remembered  by  the  inhabitants  of  that 
famous  seaport. 

It  was  very  hot — punkahs  and  electric  fans  did  not  keep 
the  houses  cool — but  then  the  summer  had  set  in. 


THE   ISTHMUS    OF   TEHUANTEPEC.  44S 

Unfortunately  I  was  obliged  to  leave  Mexico  without  per- 
sonally saying  good-bye  to  my  kind  friends,  General  and 
Madame  Diaz.  The  President  had  been  ill,  and  subse- 
quently paid  a  lengthy  visit  to  Colonel  Alarcon,  the 
Governor  of  Morelos,  from  which  he  had  not  returned 
when   I  left  the  country. 

Their  kindness  and  courtesy,  the  extraordinary  thought- 
fulness  and  consideration  with  which  I  was  treated  will  ever 
remain  in  my  mind.  Without  the  personal  aid  of  General 
Diaz  I  could  not  have  written  "  Mexico  as  I  saw  it,"  and 
perhaps  this  peep  into  the  life  of  the  people,  over  whom  he 
rules  so  powerfully,  may  help  to  make  that  wonderful 
country  a  little  better  understood. 

Congress  opened  on  i6th  September,  1901,  and  in  his 
speech  the  President  stated  the  Revenue  of  Mexico  ex- 
ceeded by  11,000,000  dollars  the  receipts  announced  six 
months  before ! 

Statistics  are  doubtless  interesting  for  those  who  like 
figures  ;  but  rows  of  statistics  would  give  but  a  poor  idea  of 
a  country  which  a  personal  account  of  the  life  of  the  people 
brings  more  easily  before  the  stranger. 

Mexico  is  a  great  country,  and  Mexico  has  a  grand  future. 
In  agriculture  and  mining  lie  her  strength,  and  she  is 
forging  ahead  in  both,  ably  steered  over  billows  and  shoals 
by  that  great  man  at  her  helm  ;  but  she  must  not  try  to  grow 
young  too  quickly  ! 


446 


APPENDIX   A. 


MINING    AND    TRADE. 


In  writing  a  book  of  travel,  one  has  to  cater  for  many  tastes,  therefore 
a  volume  on  Mexico  would  be  incomplete  without  mention  of  its  mining 
and  trade  prospects,  consequently  this  chapter  is  inserted  for  the  benefit 
of  people  interested  in  such  subjects,  although  it  has  nothing  to  do  with 
my  personal  experiences.  For  the  notes  I  am  greatly  indebted  to 
Mr.  William  Guggenheim  and  Mr.  Herbert  Bourchier. 

Silver  has  been  worked  continuously  since  the  days  of  Cortds,  and 
even  the  old  Aztecs  made  ornaments  of  gold  and  worked  in  precious 
metals. 

Some  hundred  and  fifty  million  ounces  of  silver  are  yearly  produced  in 
the  world,  of  which  nearly  fifty-five  million  come  from  Mexico,  and  about 
the  same  amount  from  the  United  States,  showing  that  the  remaining 
forty  million  ounces  represent  the  yield  of  all  the  rest  of  the  earth  put 
together. 

So  many  tales  have  been  told  of  the  fabulous  mineral  wealth  of  Mexico, 
one  readily  forms  an  impression  that  as  a  mineral-producing  country 
Mexico  stands  foremost  among  the  nations  of  the  world.  This,  however, 
is  not  so  when  one  compares  Mexico's  mineral  production  with  that  of  the 
United  States.  Considering  the  limited  population,  and  the  improvident 
and  indolent  nature  of  its  people,  the  production  of  mineral  is  certainly 
large,  and  with  capital,  energy,  and  intelligence  this  production  is  capable 
of  material  increase.  It  is  upon  its  silver  production  that  Mexico's  re- 
putation as  a  great  mining  country  is  founded.  In  the  States  of  Chihuahua, 
Zacatecas,  Guanajuato,  and  Hidalgo,  as  well  as  on  the  west  coast,  silver 
mines  of  marvellous  richness  have  been  worked  for  years,  many  of  which 
are  still  producing  that  metal. 

Although  no  statistics  exist,  the  average  cost  to-day  of  producing  silver 
is  no  doubt  cheaper  in  Mexico  than  in  the  United  States,  so  that  a  material 


Bringing  the  ore  from  the  mine. 


An  arrastra. 


To  face  Appendix  A. 


MINING  AND    TRADE.  447 

lowering  of  the  price  of  silver  would  result  in  the  quicker  closing  down  of 
mines  in  the  United  States  than  in  Mexico.  The  principal  mining  States 
of  Mexico,  in  addition  to  those  already  mentioned,  are  Durango,  Coahuila, 
Nuevo  Leon,  and  Tamaulipus,  and  they  are  still  affording  ample  oppor- 
tunity for  ex-ploitation  and  investment.  All  these  States  have  reasonably 
good  railroad  facilities,  and  most  of  their  mines  are  accessible  to  the  large 
American  smelting  establishments  in  Mexico. 

Branch  roads,  however,  connecting  the  main  lines  of  railroads  are  still 
in  many  places  essential,  but  when  these  are  once  made  the  increase  in  the 
mineral  production  of  the  country  will  be  enormous.  The  States  of 
Oaxaca,  Guerrero,  Michoacan,  and  indeed  several  others,  have  not  yet 
been  thoroughly  exploited  because  of  this  want  of  railroad  facilities,  but 
there  is  no  doubt  their  mineral  resources  are  large. 

The  mining  laws  of  Mexico  are  excellent,  and  few  difficulties  are  en- 
countered. The  law,  "  follow  down  your  side  lines,"  here  prevails,  and  the 
troublesome  apex  law  which  has  involved  so  many  mines  in  the  United 
States  in  litigation  is  not  known.  The  old  law  of  Mexico,  compelling  the 
owner  of  a  mine  to  do  a  stipulated  amount  of  work  yearly,  and  employ  so 
many  men  on  the  claims,  has  recently  been  changed.  The  present  law  is 
simply  how  much  surface  the  mines  cover,  and  the  stamp  tax  is  paid 
accordingly.  Therefore  the  greater  the  surface,  naturally  the  prettier  the 
owner's  mine  titles  look  covered  with  variegated  and  beautifully  coloured 
but  expensive  stamps  !  The  mining  officials  as  a  rule  are  courteous  and 
painstaking,  and  extended  litigation  is  hardly  known. 

Various  methods  for  the  treatment  of  ores  are  employed ;  large  lead 
and  copper  smelters  and  lixiviation  plants  are  scattered  throughout  the 
country,  but  there  is  one  process  that  is  peculiarly  and  characteristically 
Mexican.     This  is  known  as  the  Patio  process. 

As  can  be  understood  by  the  simplest  mind,  a  mine  will  produce  by  far 
more  low^-grade  ore  than  high-grade,  and,  in  fact,  few  mines  pay  their 
expenses  if  this  low-grade  ore  cannot  be  successfully  treated  in  some  way 
or  other.  At  this  point  one  must  consider  that  when  the  mines  of  Mexico 
were  first  worked  there  were  no  railways  or  means  of  transporting  heavy 
machinery,  therefore  some  method  had  to  be  devised  for  treating  ores  in 
the  interior,  the  commercial  value  of  which  would  not  stand  the  heavy  rate 
of  freight  transportation  on  mule  back  from  the  mines  to  Vera  Cruz,  and 
from  thence  by  steamer  or  sailing  vessel  to  the  large  smelters  in  England 
or  Germany.  In  the  year  1557,  a.d.,  a  native  of  Pachuca,  by  name 
Bartolome  de  Medina,  invented  the  Patio  process,  of  which  I  will  give  a 
short  description  as  it  is  still  in  daily  use. 

On  the  ore  being  brought  up  to  the  mouth  of  the  shaft  in  cow-hide  bags 
(by  means  of  a  bolster  in  the  shape  of  a  huge  barrel,  which  is  pulled  round 


448  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

on  an  elongated  axis  by  horses  or  mules,  and  around  which  the  hoisting 
cable  is  wound),  it  is  spread  out  in  the  yard  of  the  mine,  and  small  boys 
then  sort  it  into  various  grades  ;  this  sorting  is  called  the  "  Pepena."  It  is 
done  merely  by  sight,  as  the  youngsters  can  tell  immediately  if  the  ore  be 
rich  or  poor  by  putting  it  in  water  and  looking  at  the  character  of  the 
stones.  After  sorting,  the  rich  ore  is  packed  for  export,  or  for  sale  to  the 
ore-buyers  or  smelters.  The  low-grade  ore  is  then  sent  down  to  one  of  the 
so  called  Haciendas  de  Beneficio.  Here  the  ore,  after  being  broken  by 
means  of  primitive  wooden  "  stamps,"  is  then  reduced  to  a  fine  mud  by 
means  of  the  arrastra. 

An  arrastra  is  a  sort  of  basin  built  into  the  floor  and  lined  with  cement 
or  stone.  The  usual  diameter  of  an  arrastra  is  about  nine  to  twelve 
feet.  In  the  middle  is  a  revolving  upright  shaft  of  wood,  through 
which  pass  two  cross-bars,  thus  giving  four  arms,  one  of  which  extends 
over  the  edge  of  the  basin,  and  to  which  the  mules  are  attached. 
To  each  of  the  cross-bars  are  hung  by  chains  four  large  heavy  stones 
having  one  flat  side  at  least.  (To  explain  this  better,  a  rough  sketch  is 
added,  showing  two  of  the  stones).  As  the  mules  drag  these  stones  round 
on  the  ore,  the  latter  gets  ground  down,  and  water  is  added,  so  that  in 
time  the  original  ore  is  reduced  to  a  state  of  liquid  mud.  This  is  then 
spread  out  in  layers  of  about  one  foot  thick  on  the  floor  of  the  Patio 
this  yard  having  a  floor  of  carefully-adjusted  large  flat  stones,  or  even  in 
some  cases  of  dove-tailed  boards.  Great  care  is  necessary  in  the  con- 
struction of  this  flooring,  otherwise  the  quicksilver  would  work  its  way 
through  and  cause  great  loss  of  both  quicksilver  and  silver. 

After  the  mud-pie  (or  Torta)  is  laid  out,  it  is  left  for  a  day  or  two, 
to  allow  the  water  to  evaporate,  and  thus  attain  a  greater  state  of 
density.  After  this  salt  is  added,  and  the  wretched  mules  are  turned  in  to 
tramp  round  for  a  day  or  two  more ;  then  sulphate  of  copper  or  magistral 
are  added,  and  often  lime,  according  to  the  nature  of  the  ore.  After  this 
quicksilver  is  put  in,  which  catches  up  the  silver.  The  poor  animals  have 
their  hoofs  and  tails  all  eaten  away  by  the  quicksilver,  and  only  last  a  few 
weeks ;  it  is  a  horrible  business.  The  Torta  is  thus  worked  from  thirty 
to  seventy  days,  according  to  the  time  of  year.  When  ready  for  washing 
oft',  i.e..,  when  the  silver  has  been  caught  up  by  the  quicksilver,  it  is  re- 
duced to  a  liquid  state,  and  put  into  a  "  washing-tank."  Owing  to  the 
high  specific  gravity  of  quicksilver,  the  latter  immediately  goes  to  the 
bottom  and  finally  by  continual  washing  nothing  but  amalgam  is  left,  i.e., 
quick-silver  and  silver. 

This  amalgam  is  then  retorted  and  the  silver  made  into  bars.  Thus 
within  about  three  months  after  the  low-grade  ore  comes  to  the  surface  it 
is  turned  into  hard  silver,  without  the  aid  of  machinery.     The  silver  is 


MINING  AND    TRADE.  449 

finally  sent  to  the  nearest  town  having  a  mint,  and  sold,  when  it  is  con- 
verted into  Mexican  dollars. 

Latterly  the  wooden  stamps  and  arrastras  have  begun  to  disappear,  owing 
to  the  railways  bringing  modern  mechanical  stamp  mills,  and  Chilian  mills, 
run  by  steam  or  electricity.  Waterfalls  long  idle  have  also  been  turned  to 
use  by  the  Pelton  wheel  and  other  inventions,  and  electricity  in  many 
Mexican  mining  camps  is  now  found. 

Not  content  with  these  changes,  new  blood  has  been  endeavouring  to 
improve  Bartolome  de  Medina's  system  of  treading  the  tortas  with  mules, 
but  as  yet  without  effect.  Recently  one  of  the  companies  tried  to  sub- 
stitute for  mules  a  long  revolving  pole  on  a  pivot  in  the  centre  of  a 
round  arrastra.  This  pole  was  furnished  with  a  quantity  of  wooden  imita- 
tion horses'  legs,  and  the  feet  were  even  shod  with  iron  shoes  to  try  and 
obtain  the  proper  friction.  These  legs  were  sent  galloping  through  the 
mud-pie,  but  without  effecting  any  good  result. 

"Last  week,"  says  a  friend,  writing  on  March  30th,  1901,  "yet  another 
substitute  for  mules  was  tried,  which  consists  of  a  set  of  stamps  that  trot 
round  and  round  the  torta  on  a  spiral  screw,  going  to  the  centre  and  back 
as  well  as  completing  the  circle.  The  small  tests  proved  satisfactory,  but 
up  to  now  nothing  has  been  found  so  satisfactory  as  the  living  animal." 

The  advantages  of  mechanically  working  these  tortas  would  be — 

( 1 )  Saving  cost  of  mules  and  their  keep. 

(2)  By  operating  day  and  night  the  torta  can  be  worked  in  half  the 
time. 

(3)  Economy  in  men  to  look  after  mules  and  tortas. 

A  mule  or  horse  for  the  patio  process  which  works  daily  from  seven 
a.m.  till  three  p.m.,  costs  from  nine  to  fifteen  dollars  net,  and  only  lasts 
three  months. 

Miners  as  a  rule  are  extremely  superstitious  \  for  instance,  they  hate  the 
sight  of  a  woman  in  the  mines,  and  are  convinced  that  if  one  goes  down  a 
mine  and  the  vein  is  subsequently  lost,  or  should  any  mishap  occur,  the 
devil  in  woman's  form  was  to  blame.  For  this  reason  there  are  compara- 
tively few  managers  who  will  allow  ladies  to  enter  their  mines  for  fear 
that  their  men  should  shun  them,  in  anticipation  of  a  cave-in  or  other 
misfortune.  In  fact,  few  men  would  accept  the  responsibility  of  taking 
ladies  down  a  mine,  and  yet,  curiously  enough,  there  are  some  places 
where  a  visit  from  one  of  the  fair  sex  is  appreciated. 


29 


450  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

The  silver  output,  according  to  the  Blue  Book,  is  : — 


Value. 

• 

1896. 

1897. 

1898. 

1899. 

Silver  ores       

,,      bullion... 

,,       coin  (Mexican) 

,,         ,,     (foreign)  ... 

Dollars. 
11,558,529 

28,565,845 
18,253,978 

483,343 

Dollars. 

11,401,176 

37,601,752 

21,274,119 

651,228 

Dollars. 

11,048,358 

39,104,930 

15,886,765 

702,024 

Dollars. 

10,766,099 

41,270,718 

4,761,105 

816,709 

Total         

58,861,695 

70,928,275 

66,742,077 

57,614,631 

The  comparison  of  these  figures  shows  that  the  greatest  decrease  has 
been  in  the  quantity  of  silver  dollars  exported,  the  amount  in  the  year 
1899  being  the  smallest  in  the  above-mentioned  years,  and,  in  fact,  in  the 
whole  of  the  ten  previous  years,  owing  to  the  low  price  obtained  for  silver 
dollars  in  the  New  York  market  during  the  past  year. 

The  following  table  gives  the  number  of  all  the  titles  referring  to  silver 
mines,  alone  or  in  conjunction  with  other  metals,  that  were  reported  to  be 
in  force  on  December  31,  1899,  and  paying  taxes.  The  figures  can  no 
doubt  be  considered  as  correct,  as  they  are  published  by  the  Department 
of  Finance,  and  are  compiled  from  data  furnished  that  department  by  the 
agents  entrusted  to  collect  the  tax  on  mining  properties.  The  figures  for 
the  previous  year  are  also  given  for  the  sake  of  comparison.  They  refer 
only  to  those  mines  that  are  in  existence,  no  mention  being  made  of  those 
whose  titles  have  lapsed  during  the  year. 

The  principal  mining  centres  where  silver  is  found  in  an  unmixed  con- 
dition are  the  State  of  Durango,  Zacatecas,  Sonora,  Chihuahua,  Hidalgo, 
and  in  Guanajuato.  Chihuahua  is  the  State  where  most  silver  is  found 
in  conjunction  with  copper  or  lead,  and  Zacatecas  where  it  is  found  in 
conjunction  with  both  these  minerals. 

Number  of  the  Titles  to  Silver  Mining  Properties  in  force  on  December 
31,  1898-99:— 


1898. 

1899. 

Silver          

,,      and  copper            

,,         ,,     lead 

,,         ,,     iron    ... 

,,         ,,     manganese     ... 

,,    ,  copper,  and  lead 

,,      and  mercurj' 

4,045 

165 

1,069 

44 
3 

4,054 

225 

1,346 

4 

27 
2 

Total 

5,326 

5,658 

MINING  AND    TRADE.  45 1 

Mexico's  lead  production  is,  considering  everything,  considerable, 
amounting  to  about  90,000  tons  yearly.  The  United  States  produce 
175,000  tons.  Lead,  which  is  found  mostly  in  carbonaceous  deposits,  is 
never  treated  in  Mexico  for  its  lead  contents  alone,  but  is  always  worked 
in  connection  with  silver  ores,  as  is  also  largely  the  case  in  the  United 
States. 

The  gold  production  amounts  to  about  9,000,000  dollars  in  value,  or 
450,000  ounces.  The  world's  production  equals  about  240,000,000  dollars 
in  value,  the  United  States  contributing  about  70,000,000  dollars.  From 
this  it  will  be  seen  that  Mexico  as  yet  is  hardly  to  be  considered  a  gold 
producer. 

The  copper  production  is  also  insignificant,  amounting  to  about  22,000 
tons,  whilst  that  of  the  United  States  is  about  268,000  tons;  the  entire 
production  of  the  world  amounts  to  486,000  tons.  The  Mexican  copper 
production,  however,  is  on  the  increase,  and  there  is  no  doubt  large 
deposits  exist,  which,  if  the  present  price  of  copper  continues  to  prevail, 
will  be  opened  up  within  the  next  few  years. 

"On  December  31,  1S99,  the  number  of  titles  to  copper  properties  in 
force  and  paying  taxes  to  the  Government  was  set  down  at  258,  as  against 
190  on  the  same  date  in  the  year  1898,  the  greatest  number,  48,  being 
situated  in  the  State  of  Michoacan,  which  are  mostly  controlled  by  the  com- 
pany working  the  Inguaran  mines  in  that  same  State.  There  are  36 
copper  properties  in  the  State  of  Aguascalientes,  32  in  the  State  of  Sonora, 
and  25  in  the  State  of  Durango,  while  Lower  California,  where  the  famous 
mines  of  the  Boleo  Company  are  situated,  is  reported  to  contain  but  15. 
The  area  covered  by  the  properties  in  the  State  of  Durango  is  1,910  acres, 
while  that  covered  by  the  48  in  the  State  of  Michoacan  is  only  1,822  acres. 
This  mineral  is  also  found  in  conjunction  with  iron  and  lead,  principally 
in  the  State  of  Zacatecas. 

The  exports  of  copper  in  the  past  three  years  have  been  as  follows  : — 


1897 

1898    ...  ...  •■•         23,169  573.^24 

792,516 


The  exports  of  copper  include  both  copper  ore  and  refined,  principally 
in  the  shape  of  copper  matte,  which  is  sent  to  the  United  States.  The 
exports  of  ore  show  a  very  large  decrease  from  previous  years,  the  quantity 
given  in  the  official  returns  being  209  tons  in  1899,  as  against  12,938  tons 
in  1898,  while  the  exports  of  refined  copper  or  copper  matte  were  24,893 
tons  in  1899,  as  against   10,199  in  1898." 


29* 


452  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

The  average  price  of  copper  in  the  New  York  market  during  the  year 
1899  was  16-67  c.  gold  per  lb. 

There  are  very  large  deposits  of  iron  ore  in  Mexico,  the  best  known 
being  in  the  State  of  Durango,  near  Durango  City.  There  is  also  a  very 
large  deposit  near  Lampazos,  in  the  State  of  Nuevo  Leon,  and  large  iron- 
works are  being  constructed  in  the  City  of  Monterey,  State  of  Nuevo 
Leon,  for  the  treatment  of  the  same.  The  successful  working,  however, 
of  these  deposits,  in  competition  with  the  cheap  production  of  iron  ore  and 
manufacture  of  pig  iron  in  the  United  States,  has  still  to  be  determined. 
In  the  United  States  they  have  the  advantage  of  operating  on  a  gigantic 
scale,  and  with  cheap  fuel.  Mexico,  however,  proposes  to  off-set  this  competi- 
tion by  high  tariff  laws.  Notwithstanding  these  large  deposits  of  iron  ore,  the 
production  is,  up  to  date,  almost  nil,  outside  of  that  used  for  so-called 
fluxing  purposes  in  lead  smelting. 

The  iron  deposit  near  Durango  City  is  called  the  "  Iron  Mountain,"  of 
which  Humboldt  wrote  when  he  made  his  enterprising  visit  so  many  years 
ago  to  Mexico.  Between  50  and  60  per  cent,  of  the  entire  mountain  is 
iron  ore.  It  belongs  to  several  proprietors,  and  strange  white  monuments 
— like  enormous  milestones — mark  the  individual  boundaries.  The  owners 
have  not  begun  to  blast  the  rock  yet ;  they  are  merely  working  away  at  the 
sand  and  fallen  pieces  all  round  the  base.  Men  shovel  this  on  to  hand- 
cars— -wheelbarrows  are  practically  unknown  in  Mexico,  where  everything 
is  carried  either  by  hand  or  on  the  head — take  it  to  the  lead-smelting 
works  near  at  hand,  or  put  it  directly  into  the  railway  cars  to  send  away  to 
other  lead-smelters,  where  it  is  used  for  so-called  fluxing  purposes. 

One  very  curious  thing  is  worth  mentioning.  On  the  mountain-side  are 
numerous  ant-heaps — not  heaps,  but  ant-quarries.  On  looking  closely  into 
any  of  these,  which  are  usually  about  two  feet  in  diameter,  one  finds  it  is 
composed  of  small  iron  pellets,  exactly  the  same  size  ;  one  heap  will 
consist  of  big  pellets,  another  of  smaller  ones,  and  so  on.  How  or  why 
do  the  ants  bring  them  in  this  way  to  the  surface  ?  The  native 
Mexican  is  often  possessed  of  an  ancient  blunderbuss,  here  is  his  iron  shot 
ready  made;  he  loads  his  gun  right  up.  Towards  evening  he  goes  down 
to  the  river  with  an  old  cow,  and  hiding  himself  behind  his  friend,  he 
waits  his  opportunity  to  shoot  at  the  wonderful  flights  of  wild  duck  as 
they  pass.  He  kills  many  at  a  time,  and  unfortunately  wounds  many  more. 
But  teal  are  excellent  eating,  and  we  thank  him  for  his  enterprise. 

The  only  large  coal-producing  area  is  that  controlled  by  the  Mexican 
International  Railroad  in  the  northern  part  of  the  country,  in  the  State 
of  Coahuila.  Other  persons  have  recently  secured  coal  tracks  in  the 
same  district,  and  when  these  are  once  operated,  the  coal  production  of 
Mexico  will  be  considerably  increased.  Coal,  however,  is  a  serious  question 


MINING  AND    TRADE.  453 

in  Mexico,  as  its  own  production  is  still  insignificant,  not  being  nearly 
sufficient  for  its  own  consumption.  Cheap  transportation  facilities,  how- 
ever, have  materially  aided  the  country  in  this  respect,  although  fuel  is  still 
expensive,  making  manufacture  costly. 

There  is  some  onyx  and  also  good  marble,  but  neither  is  produced  in 
large  quantities.  Oil  has  not  been  worked  yet  in  Mexico,  although  several 
wells  have  been  found. 

For  a  country,  therefore,  whose  main  industry  is  mining,  any  comparison 
at  present  with  the  United  States  is  far  from  favourable,  but  the  comparison 
is  hardly  fair,  as  the  United  States  far  surpasses  any  other  country  in  its 
combined  mineral  production.  There  is  abundant  opportunity  in  Mexico 
for  mining,  and  with  expert  engineers  the  country  can  be  readily  exploited 
and  examined.  High  values,  however,  are  already  put  on  valuable  pro- 
perties, most  of  which  are  still  held  by  Mexicans.  During  the  last  ten 
years  many  foreigners,  particularly  Americans,  have  become  large  mining 
property  owners.  Many  new  mines  are  being  opened  up  everywhere ;  but 
bogus  companies  are  doing  much  harm.  It  is  quite  pitiable  to  find  the 
number  of  companies  which  have  been  floated  in  England  without  the  very 
slightest  chance  of  financial  success,  suffice  to  say  that  such  things  have  been 
and  are  being  done.  In  one  notable  instance  people  took  up  the  shares,  yet 
no  returns  were  forthcoming ;  more  money  was  demanded  for  increased 
machinery,  and  better  prospects  were  reported.  Part  of  the  money  was 
actually  expended  in  plant  which  had  been  sent  out — as  a  blind  no  doubt, 
and  salaries  paid,  but  only  to  the  promoters  under  assumed  names,  and 
not  for  labour  at  the  mines.  There  is  ore,  certainly,  but  such  poor  stuff 
it  could  never  pay  to  work,  a  fact  the  promoters  must  have  known  full 
well.  How  is  it  that  investors  do  not  send  out  skilled,  competent,  and 
honest  experts  to  investigate  before  they  pay  their  money  ? 

We  heard  many  stories  of  the  kind  in  Mexico,  and  would  earnestly 
entreat  people  before  investing  in  Ivlexican  mines— of  which  there  are 
several  splendid  ones — to  be  sure  what  they  are  about  before  parting  with 
any  money.  Up  to  the  last  ten  years  the  methods  pursued  in  mining  were 
of  a  very  simple  and  crude  nature,  but  during  that  time  more  advanced 
modes  of  operating,  on  a  large  scale  with  machinery,  have  been  introduced, 
so  that  to-day  the  mining  methods  employed  in  Mexico  compare  favourably 
with  those  in  any  part  of  the  world. 

Turning  from  mining,  it  may  be  mentioned  that  the  export  and  import 
trade  of  Mexico  are  steadily  increasing.  The  bulk  of  both  is  naturally 
with  the  United  States.  England  is  gradually  losing  ground  in  her  exports, 
Germany  as  gradually  gaining  it.  Will  any  manufacturer  whose  eyes 
chance  to  fall  upon  these  pages  lay  these  facts  to  heart  ?  We  are  losing 
ground,  Germany  and  the  United  States  are  gaining  it.     W\\y  ?     Because 


454  MEXICO  AS   I  SAW  IT. 

we  are  allowing  these  two  enterprising  countries  to  pass  us  in  the  race  for 
commerce,  and  are  folding  our  hands  and  working  on  exactly  the  same 
lines  to-day  as  we  did  fifty  years  ago  when  we  were  first  in  the  field.  Other 
countries  have  gone  ahead,  and  the  sooner  we  shoot  past  them  and  revo- 
lutionise our  methods  and  our  industries,  the  better,  unless  we  wish  to 
drop  altogether  out  of  the  reckoning.  The  United  States  are  "  knocking 
at  the  door " — as  Ibsen  would  say — but  let  us  push  past  and  open  it. 
English  trade  unions  are  stifling  our  trade,  as  trusts  seem  likely  eventually 
to  ruin  the  manufacturers  of  America. 

Want  of  fuel  is  one  of  the  most  pressing  needs  of  Mexico.  Forests 
are  being  burnt  up,  and  cabinet  woods  destroyed.  Husks  of  cotton  seed, 
wheat,  straw,  and  cotton-bushes  are  being  utilised  for  fuel.  There  are  beds 
of  peat,  as  yet  hardly  worked  ;  indeed,  peat  is  found  within  ten  miles  of 
the  City. 

According  to  Blue  Book  reports  : — 

The  imports  of  coal  and  coke  in  the  year  1899  amounted  to  886,637 
tons,  as  against  597,842  tons  in  1898.  The  increase  is  accounted  for  in 
part  by  the  many  new  industrial  enterprises  in  the  Republic,  and  also 
by  the  extension  of  the  railway  lines,  which  are  being  steadily  increased 
in  length.  The  largest  portion  of  both  coal  and  coke  comes  from  the 
United  States,  the  United  Kingdom  and  her  Colonies,  and  Germany 
following  next.  The  coal  brought  from  Australia  is  landed  at  the 
ports  on  the  Pacific  coast,  principally  Acapulco  which  is  the  coaling  station 
for  vessels  of  the  Pacific  squadron.  Some  is  also  taken  to  Manzanillo 
where  it  is  employed  on  the  railway  from  that  port  to  the  City  of  Colima, 
and  much  is  also  used  by  the  contractors  for  the  water  supply  and  sewerage 
of  Manzanillo.  This  port  of  Manzanillo  is  undoubtedly  destined  to  be  one 
of  the  most  important  on  the  Pacific  coast,  especially  when  it  is  in  direct 
communication  with  the  town  of  Guadalajara  by  rail  now  under  con- 
struction. 

The  export  of  coal  from  Mexico  in  1899  amounted  to  110,510  tons,  as 
against  116,679  tons  in  1898.  The  price  of  the  ton  of  Mexican  coal  on 
the  border,  as  put  down  in  the  ofticial  return  of  exports,  was  four  dollars 
ten  cents  silver  per  ton,  while  the  price  of  foreign  coal  in  the  City  of 
Mexico  ranges  from  twenty  to  twenty-two  dollars  per  ton. 

Roughly  speaking,  America  supplies  sixty-one  and  a  half  per  cent,  of 
Mexico's  wants ;  the  United  Kingdom  twenty  per  cent. :  Germany  seven- 
teen per  cent.  The  remaining  per-centage  is  divided  into  very  small 
proportions  among  the  other  countries.  The  imports  of  iron  rails  in  1899 
amounted  to  ;^394,824,  as  against  ;^336,578  in  1898.  This  increase  is 
accounted  for  by  the  development  of  the  railway  systems.  Barbed  wire 
imported   in  1899  amounted  to  ;!{T52,8i5,  as   against  £j\&,2\'i  in    1898. 


MINING  AND    TRADE. 


45S 


Every  branch  of  iron  and  steel  trade  is  increasing ;  ploughs,  corrugated 
iron  sheets,  wire,  bar  steel,  iron  piping,  hoop  iron,  agricultural  implements, 
etc.,  nearly  all  of  which  comes  from  the  United  States.  What  are 
Birmingham  and  Sheffield  about  when  this  ever-increasing  trade  is  waiting 
for  their  produce  ? 

"  Steam  engines,  both  locomotive  and  stationary,  show  an  increase  of 
^150,000  in  the  value  imported;  and  if  taken  in  conjunction  with  the 
former  item,  indicate  more  fully  the  steady  progress  of  the  country  in  the 
development  of  industries.  The  total  imports  of  machinery  and  steam 
engines  in  the  years  1897-9S-99  were  as  follows  : — 


Steam  engines 
jMachinery 


Total 


1,469,719 


While  on  the  subject  of  machinery,  it  may  be  mentioned  that,  apart 
from   the  increase  of    fifteen    cotton    mills,   several    large    factories   for 
tanning  leather  and   making  boots  and  shoes,  breweries,  distillery  plants 
brick  and  clay  factories,   have  been  established  and  there  are  others  in 
course  of  construction. 

The  value  of  the  chemical  products  imported  into  Mexico  in  the  year 
1899  was  ;^455,3oo,  as  against  ;/^376,6i5  in  1898.  The  imports  from 
the  United  States  have  increased  very  considerably  during  the  past  year. 
The  boot  and  shoe  industry  is  almost  entirely  in  the  hands  of  American 
manufacturers,  though  the  principal  dealers  in  boots  and  shoes  in  the  City 
of  Mexico  are  Spaniards. 

The  American  manufacturers,  always  on  the  look-out  for  new  fields  for 
the  investment  of  capital,  have  made  a  purchase  of  a  piece  of  land  in  the 
City  of  Guadalajara,  and  are  erecting  a  large  tannery  with  a  boot  and  shoe 
actory  attached.  The  imports  of  petroleum  oil,  both  crude  and  refined, 
show  an  increase  from  ;^75,i6o  in  1898  to  ;,^io9,6i7  in  1899,  the  greater 
quantity  being  imported  in  a  crude  state,  and  refined  in  the  large  refineries 
established  at  Tampico,  Vera  Cruz,  and  the  City  of  Mexico,  whence  it  is 
distributed  all  over  the  country. 

Openings  for  British  trade  being  the  chief  purpose  of  these  reports,  it  is 
only  fair  to  the  manufacturer  and  merchant  to  bring  before  his  notice  the 
articles  which  form  the  principal  part  of  the  import  trade  of  each  country, 
and  it  is,  therefore,  hoped  that  the  foregoing  figures,  referring  to  the  trade 


456  MEXICO   AS   I  SAW  IT. 

of  Mexico  for  the  year  1899,  may  be  of  service;  and  though  they  show  a 
shght  increase  in  favour  of  British  trade,  there  is  ample  room  for  it  to 
increase  very  considerably.  The  figure  of  j[,2,q>']2,\21  set  down  as  the 
value  of  the  imports  from  the  United  Kingdom  represents  eighteen  and  a 
half  per  cent,  of  the  whole  of  the  trade  of  Mexico  in  the  year  1899,  and 
includes  the  imports  from  her  colonies  as  well,  which,  according  to  the 
official    returns,    were:    India,    £a^,'^c>S'>    Australia,    ^^8,698 ;    Canada, 

^3,865. 

The  trade  of  Mexico,  as  compared  with  that  of  other  countries,  may  be 
small,  but  it  is  a  country  that  is  being  opened  up  rapidly.  The  imports  into 
Mexico  in  1889  were  ^{^"8,608, 147,  while  in  1899  they  had  increased  to 
;^ii,254,3i5,  an  increase  in  the  ten  years  of  ^2,646, 168,  or  over  thirty 
per  cent.  This  of  itself  shows  the  actual  development  of  the  country,  as 
the  value  of  the  imports  being  based  on  the  gold  values  from  each  country, 
or  the  equivalent  of  five  dollars  to  the  ^i,  is  not  liable  to  the  fluctua- 
tions of  exchange,  as  is  the  case  with  the  exports.  This  method  of 
calculating  the  value  of  foreign  merchandise  has  been  in  use  for  many 
years,  so  that  it  is  easy  to  obtain  the  value  of  the  imports  from  any  par- 
ticular country  by  reducing  the  value  as  given  in  the  Mexican  customs 
returns  at  par. 

British  trade  in  Mexico  is  almost  entirely  in  the  hands  of  .agents,  many 
of  whom  are  not  even  acquainted  with  the  country  and  its  customs,  and 
speak  very  little  Spanish,  while  others,  though  knowing  the  manners  and 
customs,  are  unable  to  correspond  in  English,  therefore  it  is  not  surprising 
that  our  trade  does  not  receive  the  impetus  it  should.  The  commercial 
travellers  who  come  to  Mexico  from  the  United  Kingdom  are,  with  very 
few  exceptions,  Germans,  or  at  least  of  German  extraction,  who,  having  a 
knowledge  of  several  languages,  are  better  able  to  undertake  the  employ- 
ment than  are  those  of  British  extraction  who  rely  on  their  abilities  to 
make  themselves  understood. 

The  point  that  a  British  merchant  should  always  bear  in  mind  in  his 
business  relations  with  Mexico  is  strict  and  careful  adherence  to  the  re- 
quirements of  the  Mexican  customs  tarifl",  of  which  an  English  translation 
can  be  procured." 

Catalogues  are  much  wanted,  they  facilitate  sale  when  illustrated. 

The  greater  part  of  the  agricultural  machinery  and  implements  at 
present,  as  has  been  already  said,  is  imported  from  the  United  States,  but 
British  manufacturers  could  well  afford  to  give  their  attention  to  the  wants 
and  requirements  of  this  market.  A  case  may  be  cited  in  support  of  this. 
English  threshing  machines  are  recognised  throughout  the  country  as 
being  superior  to  those  made  in  the  United  States.  Their  finish  and 
adjustment  is  better,  and   the  results   obtained  are  greater,  but  owing  to 


MINING  AND    TRADE. 


457 


the  inability  to  procure  pieces  for  repairing  them  in  cases  of  accident,  the 
order  is  often  given  to  an  American  firm. 

The  cyHnders  in  American  machines  are  made  in  pieces,  and  the  teeth 
are  attached  by  means  of  screws  and  nuts ;  in  case  of  one  or  more 
breaking,  they  can  be  taken  out  and  new  ones  put  in,  while  in  machines 
of  British  manufacture  the  cylinder  and  teeth  are  made  in  one  piece, 
which,  if  broken  by  accident,  has  to  be  taken  out,  rendering  the  machine 
useless  until  a  new  piece  can  be  obtained,  either  by  having  it  cast 
in  one  of  the  foundries  in  the  country,  which  is  expensive,  on  account  of 
the  mould  having  to  be  made  first,  or  by  waiting  for  it  to  come  from  the 
makers,  this  often  entailing  a  delay  of  several  months. 

The  demand  for  mining  machinery  and  tools  is  always  increasing,  and 
though  there  are  several  American  firms  established  in  Mexico  city, 
English  tools  and  machinery  would  find  a  market. 

Return  of  Principal  Articles  of  Import  to  Mexico  during  the 
Calendar  Years  1898-99. 


1898. 

1899. 

Articles. 

Quantity. 

V'alue. 

Quantity. 

Value. 

£ 

I 

Raw  cotton      

Cwts.    ... 

162,246 

209,252 

127,398 

170,864 

Coal  and  coke 

Tons     ... 

597.842 

317,640 

886,637 

423.750 

Cotton  piece-goods    ... 

Sq.  yards 

47.330,090 

651,386 

49,029,863 

741.556 

Cottons  at  value 

383.765 

431.544 

Linen  piece-goods 

Sq.  yards 

1,053,416 

65.157 

2,233,420 

79.914 

Linens  at  value 

42,839 

45.918 

Woollen  piece-goods... 

Sq.  yards 

1,620,079 

262,174 

1,816,123 

307.763 

Woollens  at  value 

77.191 

89,024 

Iron  and  steel 

Tons     ... 

114,777 

1,032,832 

134,480 

1.384.572 

Machinery  and  implements . 

1,320,800 

1,809,318 

Chemical  products     ... 

376,615 

455.300 

Spirituous  liquors 

499.149 

548,594 

Paper  and  manufactures  of  . 

... 

306,234 

407,056 

Other  articles 

... 

3.576,776 

4.359,142 

Total 

9,121,810 

11,254,315 

458 


MEXICO  AS  I  SAW  IT. 


Return  of  Principal  Articles  of  Export  from  Mexico  during  the 
Calendar  Years  1898-99. 


Articles. 

Quantity. 

Value. 

Quantity. 

Value. 

I 

£ 

Gold      

1,651,486 

1.583.866 

Silver     ... 

6,326,592 

5.731.455 

Fibres    ... 

Tons     ... 

80,586 

1,709,251 

85,788 

2,370,896 

Coffee 

Cwts.    ... 

380,714 

919,362 

357.113 

789,188 

Copper 

Tons     ... 

23,169 

573.824 

25.103 

792,516 

1-ive  stock 

. 

Head    ... 

255.422 

500,479 

206,336 

634,710 

Tobacco 

Lbs.      ... 

9,010,541 

472,266 

3,932,225 

222,382 

Hides  and  skins 

Cwts.    ... 

126,986 

341.563 

115.369 

387.551 

Lead 

Woods,  cabinet 



1,203,044 

311,961 
176,993 

1,327,508 

386,568 
201,886 

Beans    

•      Cwts.    ... 

263,874 

165,011 

321,653 

169,996 

Dyevvoods 

Tons     . . . 

57.571 

164,072 

49,849 

85,141 

Vanilla 

Lbs.      ... 

59.034 

65,011 

133.676 

181,547 

Chicle 

Other  articles  ... 

2,113,962 

59.904 
433.738 

2.359.859 

60,831 
501,021 

Total     ... 

13. 871. 513 

14,099,554 

Return  showing  Total  Value  of  all  Articles  Exported  from  and  Imported 
to  Mexico  to  and  from  all  Foreign  Countries  during  the  Calendar  Years 
1898-99. 


Country. 

E.xports. 

Imports. 

1898. 

1899. 

1S98. 

1899. 

United  Kingdom 

United  States             

France             

Germany          

Spain  ... 

Other  countries          

Total        

£ 
1,387,151 
9,987,490 

693,575 
832,291 

69,357 
901,649 

13,871,513 

£ 
986,969 
11,068,149 
563,982 
352,489 
105,747 
1,022,218 

14,099,554 

£ 
1,608,888 

4,444,472 
1,092,751 
1,049.734 

495,335 
430,630 

9,121,810 

£ 
2,072,103 
5,502,041 
1,294,922 
1,222,784 
609,209 
553,256 

11,254,315 

The  Imports  from  the  United  States  to  Me.xico  in  the  last  si.x  months  of 

1900  were $16,733,170  (American  money) 

The  Exports  from  Mexico  to  the  United  States  in  the  last  si.x  months  of 

1900  were $58,407,293  (Mexican) 

The  Imports  from  England   to  j\Iexico  during  the  last  six  months  of  1900 

^■cre §4,840,459  (gold) 

The  Exports  from   Mexico  to  England   in  the  last  six  months   were 

§8,751,534  (Mexican  silver) 


MINING  AND    TRADE. 


459 


RECEIPTS  OF  THE  MEXICAN  TREASURY  FROM  JULY  i,   iSSi, 


Years. 

1881  to  1S82 

1882  ,,  iSS:; 


1S83 
1S84 
1885 
1 886 
1887 
1888 
i88q 


1S84 
1885 
1886 
1887 
1 888 


TO  JUNE  30,  1899. 

Years. 

1890  to  1891 

1891  ,,  1892 


Receipts. 
830,466,093.74 
32,850,931.25 
37,621,065.29 
30,660,434.24 
28,980,895.76 
32,126,509.07 
40,962,045.23 

34,374,783-32 
38,566,601.69 


1892  „  1893 

1893  „  1894 

1894  ,,  1895 

1895  ,,  1896 

1896  ,,  1897 

1897  ,,  189S 

1898  ,,  1S99 


Figures  are  dry  and  uninteresting  to  the  general 
an  idea  to  the  man  wanting  knowledge.  Thus  we 
prove  of  use  to  someone. 


Receipts. 

§37,391,804.99 

37>474,879-20 

42,813,455.71 
40,211,747.13 
43>945,69900 
50,521,407.00 
50,970,044.37 
52,487,502.23 
59,790,242.96 

reader  ;  but  they  give 
hope  the  above  may 


46o 


APPENDIX    B. 

HINTS  FOR   TRAVELLERS. 

As   it  spoils  the  sequence  of  a  book  to  interlard  it  with  too  many  facts,   this  second 
Appendix  is  added,  wherein  may  be  found  a  few  useful  hints  for  travellers, 
(i)  The  best  time  to  visit  Mexico  is  from  November  to  May. 

(2)  A  few  words  as  to  expenses. 

Travelling  in  the  Republic  costs  about  as  much  as  in  Holland,  France  or  Germany, 
that  is  to  say,  about  ;i^i  a  day.  It  is  not  so  cheap  as  Switzerland  or  Italy,  where  good 
hotels  can  be  found  at  los.  per  diem,  nor  is  it  anything  like  so  expensive  as  the  United 
States.  In  fact,  it  is  really  not  exorbitant  at  all,  but  the  hotels  arc  bad.  That  is  one 
of  the  most  important  items  for  jNIexicans  to  alter.  If  they  want  their  City  to  be  the 
Paris  of  the  Western  World  they  must  erect  good  hotels  and  look  to  their  water  supply 
and  sanitation.  If  the  country  is  ever  to  be  a  popular  land  for  travellers,  they  must  see 
to  their  hotels  everywhere  ;  there  are  not  more  than  half-a-dozen  good  ones  in  the 
whole  country.  Their  excellent  railways  and  facilities  for  getting  about  are  far  better 
than  the  accommodation  which  awaits  the  traveller  at  the  end  of  his  journey. 

(3)  A  little  knowledge  of  Spanish  is  a  necessity,  although  French  and  English  are 
sufficient  in  educated  society. 

(4)  A  rubber  bath  is  a  constant  source  of  joy. 

(5)  Everything  from  soap  to  veils,  from  tooth-powder  to  note-paper,  is  expensive, 
although  practically  anything  can  be  procured  in  the  City.  Tobacco,  cabs,  and  flowers 
are  cheap  ! 

(6)  Both  thick  and  thin  clothing  are  necessary.  It  is  hot  in  the  tropics,  and  cold  in  the 
higher  altitudes,  especially  at  night.  It  is  essential,  therefore,  to  be  provided  with  many 
changes  of  clothing,  at  the  same  time  on  specific  trips  one  must  be  able  to  do  with  little. 
A  hand  bag  to  contain  enough  for  one  night  is  indispensable  for  cars,  etc. 

High  light  silk  dresses  for  ladies  are  preferable  to  full  evening  dress,  which  is  only 
required  for  balls  or  large  dinner  parties.  Nothing  that  dust  spoils  is  advisable,  and  light 
blue  or  lilac  are  colours  that  fly  in  the  sun. 

(7)  Travelling  by  private  car  is  strongly  recommended  when  it  can  be  aff"orded.  (For 
prices  see  page  59. ) 

(8)  No  one  suffering  from  a  weak  heart  should  attempt  to  stay  long  in  such  elevated 
towns  as  Mexico  City,  Zacatecas,  Pachuca,  Puebla,  Amecameca,  Patzcuaro,  Texcoco, 
Tlaxcula,  Toluca,  Tula,  all  of  which  are  over  7,000  feet  above  the  sea  level. 

(9)  For  photographers  and  artists  there  are  "gems"  everywhere,  and  shops  where 
materials  can  be  procured  are  found  in  most  of  the  big  cities. 

(10)  Campbell's  Guide  is  most  useful,  and  Janviers,  though  out  of  date,  gives  much 
valuable  historical  information.  The  perusal  of  Prescott's  Histor>-  of  Mexico  adds  enor- 
mously to  the  pleasure  of  the  voyager,  and  Romero's  "Geographical  Notes"  is  a 
valuable  addition  to  knowledge. 

(11)  The  railway  folders  contain  many  useful  hints.  English  is  spoken  at  all  stations 
and  generally  by  the  conductors  of  trains.  The  Custom  House  is  nearly  as  severe  as  in 
the  States  ! 

(12)  Without  good  introductions  the  visitor  sees  nothing  of  the  life  of  the  upper 
classes. 

A  large  amount  of  patience  and  a  good  temper  are  necessary  when  travelling. 


461 


INDEX 


A. 

Adobe,  composition  of,  91. 

forts,  raised  by  Aztecs,  ib. 

"  Aguacate,"  or  butter  plant,  293,  435. 
Aguas  Calientas,  opals  found  at,  259,  265. 
Ahuistotl,  Aztec  monarch,  392 
Alameda,  common  to  every  Mexican  town, 

80. 
Alar^on,  Senor  Gobernador  Manuel,  Col. 

Governor  of  Morelos,  299,  309. 

born  commander,  325. 

prisoner  at  San  Gabriel,  344. 

receives  Mrs.  Tweedie,  292. 

subdues  Morelos,  345-6. 

Alcade  (Mayor),  310. 

Alguacil,  or  chamberlain  of  bull-fight,  180. 

Alligators,  408,  412-14. 

Almanza,  Don  Martin  Enriquez  de,  Viceroy 

of  Mexico,  174. 
Alpuyeca,  welcome  to    Mrs.  A.   Tweedie 

at,  309. 
Alvarado,  famous  for  oysters  and  tarpon, 
410. 

Mrs.  A.  Tweedie  taken  to,  405. 

Alvarez,  Dr.  Antonio,  370. 
Amecameca,  sacred  shrine  at,  225. 
Amor,  family  well-known  in  Mexico,  337. 

Joaquin,  337. 

Don  Pablo,  153. 

Victor,  337. 

Anahuac,  Valley  of,  173. 

Anona,  435. 

Anti-burro,  rare  animal,  363. 

Arrow  heads,  366,  397. 

Atequiza,  station  for  Chapala  Lake,  248. 

Auto-da-Fe,  in  Mexico,  172-3. 

Austria,    Emperor  of,   chapel   erected  by, 

270. 
Aztecs  or  Mexicans,  161,  371. 
cycle,  stone  cylinders  discovered  re- 
presenting, 212. 

cruelty  of,  163. 

founders  of  Mexico  City,  126. 

founded  Tenochtitlan,  164. 

gods  of,  164. 

greatness  of,  171. 

human  sacrifices  practised  by,  100. 

land  of,  18. 

law  of  succession  of,  165. 

military  ardour  among,  166. 

religion  of,  165. 

■ laws  relating  to  slavery  among,  166. 

worship  of  the  serpent  by,  317. 


B. 

Balcazar,     Rutilio,     Jefe     Politico     de 

Cuernavaca,   313. 
"Bolla,"     money    distributed     by     god- 
parents, 200. 
Bananas,  grove  of,  347. 
Banderillas,   179. 
"Bando,"    or     proclamation     posted    in 

town,  135. 
"Bandolon,"  chief  musical  instrument  of 

the  Mexicans,  160. 
Banks,  William,  American  Consul,  265. 
Barranda,     Hon.     Joaquin,      Minister     of 

Justice  and  Education,  142. 
Barrett,  Mr.,  of  Sonora,  17. 
Barron,  Captain,  leader  of  English  Society 

in  Mexico  City,  176. 
Barrow,  Captain,  157. 
Barton,  Mary,  visit  to  Galveston,  13-14. 
Bartols,    Lieutenant,   Military  representa- 
tive of  Germany,  156. 
Batres,  Senor  Leopoldo,  Government  In- 
spector, 210,  380. 

• Professor,  3S2. 

Bazaine,  Marshal,  meets  Maximilian,  267, 

367. 
Beaumont,  Mexicans  educated  at,  146. 
Belgians,   King  of,   sends   help  to   Maxi- 
milian, 268. 
Belmar,    Francisco    (Secretary   of    State), 

370. 
books  on  Indian  tongues,  written  by, 

371- 

Bernadino,  Juan,  illness  of,  102. 

Biltong,  43. 

Blake,  W.  W.,  work  on  Aztecs  and  Toltec 
by,  in. 

Body,  Managing  Director  of  Tehuantepec 
Railway,  421. 

Book  of  Famine,  stone  replica  of,  212. 

Bonilla,  Don  Alonzo  Fernandez  de,  one  of 
the  Inquisitors,  174. 

Borkum,  island  of,  61. 

Bourganvillia,  253. 

Bradley,  Superintendent  of  Mexican  Cen- 
tral Railway,  2S4. 

BranifF,  Madame,  142. 

Thomas,  President  of  Mexican  Rail- 
way, 407. 

Bryan,  Mr.,  candidate  for  Presidency  of 
U.S.,  66. 

Bulls,  caught  for  bull-ring,  36. 

Bull-fight,  description  of,  177,  186. 


462 


INDEX. 


Bull -fight,  Mexicans  National  sport,  Mrs. 
Tweedie  witnesses,  176. 

officials  at,  178-9. 

Bull-ring,    described    by  Mrs.    Tweedie, 

177-S6. 
Bull-riding,  37  ;  bull-tailing,  ib. 
Buzzards,     or    Zopilotes,    scavengers     of 

Mexico,  409,  43S. 
Burros  (donkeys),  106. 

c. 

CahaUero,  or  horseman,  342. 

Cabs,  in  Mexico  City,  different  classes  of, 

145  6. 
Cacahuimilpa,  grottoes  of,  visited  by  Mrs. 

Tweedie,  326. 
news  of   Queen  Victoria's 

death  received   by  Mrs. 

A.  Tweedie,  333. 
stalactites  and   stalagmites 

at,  330. 
Cactus,  24  ;  coats  made  from,  97. 
Cafetal,  282. 

Camacho,  Seiior,  the  banker,  157. 
Cambodia,  162. 
Canada,  2. 

Canary  Islands,  161-2. 
Canas,  Senor  Eugenio  y.  Treasurer  of  the 

State,  297. 
Canning,  American  perfection  of,  422. 
Canon  de  Guerero,  or  Canon  of  Tamasopo, 

275- 
Canon  de  Tomellin,  magnificence  of,  354, 

360. 
Capeadores,  bull-fighters,  178. 
Caporal  (head  rancheman),  36. 
Carlotta,  Empress  of  Brazil,  263. 
appeals    in   vain  to    Napoleon  III., 

267-8. 
Carrington,  Mr.,  meets  Mrs.  A.  Tweedie, 

17- 

Miss,  receives  Mrs.   A.   Tweedie    at 

frontier,   18. 
Carniaje  (or  coach),  description  of,  23. 
Cartwright,  Mr.   Fairfax,  English  Charg6 

d'Affaires  in  Mexico,  154. 
"  Cascada  de  San  Antonio,"  295, 
Castes,  among  Toltecs,  162. 
Castillio,  Mexican  general,  267, 
Cathedral  Cave,  La  Ventana,  280. 
Cattle,  branding  of,  26-29. 

habits  of,  34-5. 

price  of,  30. 

prickly  pears,  fond  of,  38. 

"round-up,"  description  of,  24-6. 

Mrs.  A.  Tweedie  starts  for,  23. 

stampede  of,  32. 

"  milling,"  lessens  danger  of,  33. 

Durham,  30. 

Herefords,  ib. 

"  Improved,"  cost  of,  30,  39. 

wild,  habits  of,  35,  dying  out,  36. 


Cattle,  native,  cost  of,  30. 

Ceiva  tree,  278. 

Central  Mexico,  strawberries  in,  97. 

Century,  last,  decline  of  France  in,  228 

• progress  of  Germany  in,  228. 

United  States  in,  ib. 

new,  prospect  for  England  in,  228. 

Chahhivitl green  stone,  168. 
Chapala,  climate  of,  250. 

Lake,  sulphur  baths  on,  251. 

Mrs.  A.  Tweedie  visits,  24S. 

Chapultepec,  castle  of,  deputation  received 
by  President  at,  132. 

formerly  home  of  Montezuma,  125. 

palace  at,  ib. 

summer  residence  of  President  Diaz, 

126. 

view  from,  127. 

Charles   V.    of    Spain,    arms    granted   to 
Mexico,  165. 

letter  from  Cortez  to,  423. 

position     of      Spain      at    accession 

of,  166. 
Charnay's    "  Ancient    Cities   of  the  New 

World,"  382. 
Ckanv,  Mexican  riding  dress,  302-3. 
Chavero,    Alfredo,   member    of  Congress, 

133- 

Chicago,  2. 

compared  to  Monterey,  61. 

Chiconcuac,  hacienda,  308. 

Chihuahua,  city  of,  84. 

China,  161-2. 

Chinacates,   arrival    of    Mrs.    Tweedie   at 
terminus  of,  88. 

engineers'  inspection  at,  91. 

Chinamoca,  gold  obtained  at,  424. 

Cholula,  dust  storm  at,  357. 

Aztec    pyramid    of,    356 ;     Prescott 

describes,  ib. 

Chiles  rellefios,  Mexican  dish,  204. 

Clayton,  General,  American   Ambassador 
to  Mexico,  155. 

Clodd,  Edward,  author  of  "  The  Childhood 
of  the  World,"  170. 

Cloete,  Mr.,  17. 

Mr.    Brodrick,    specialist  in     horse- 
breeding,  39. 

Coatlan,  Mexican  village,  type  of,  322. 

Coatzacoalcos,  421. 

harbour  to  be  built  at,  426. 

meeting  of  Mrs.  Alec  Tweedie  with 

Sir  Weetman  Pearson  at,  421. 

river,  423. 

situation  of,  431. 

Cobos,  General,  defeated  by  Diaz,  367. 

Cocks,  game,  price  of,  73. 

Cock-fight,  or  Los  Gallos,  description  of, 
72-76. 

Cock-pit,  description  of,  72. 

Cocoa-nuts,  253. 

Coco/ixt/i,  Indian  name  for  fever,  102. 

Colima,  active  volcano  in  Mexico,  250. 


INDEX. 


463 


CoUey,  Mrs.,  154. 
Colls,  Mr.,  407. 

Arthur,  410. 

Conley,  Mrs.  E.  M.,  227. 

Contreras,  Don  Pedro  Moya  de,  one  of  the 

Inquisitors,  174. 
Cornelius,  William,  victim  of  Inquisition 

in  Mexico,  174. 
Corona,  General,  269. 

Maximilian  surrendered  to,  270. 

Corral,  cattle  pen,  24. 

manadas  brought  into,  38. 

Corregidor,  an  official  of  the  Holy  Inquisi- 
tion, 172. 
Cortes,   Hernando,  166. 
lands  in  Mexico,  167  ;  annexation  of, 

ib. 

enters  Mexico  City,  168. 

introduces  Inquisition   into  Mexico, 

172. 
human  sacrifices  common  up  to  time 

of,  200. 
desk  owned    by,    now    in    Madame 

DegoUado's  possession,  273. 

palace  of,  at  Cuernavaca,  297. 

sugar    manufactured  at  hacienda  by, 

302. 

hacienda,  description  of,  303-5. 

mines  worked  by,  424. 

road  made  by,  425. 

Corvera,  Marquis  de(SpanishMinister),  198. 
Cosio,    Manuel    Gonsalez,     Minister     of 

Interior,  142. 
Cote,   Augustin  Munoz  de,  Jefe  Politico, 

350- 
Cow,  danger  of  meeting  single,  34. 
Cowboys,  24  ;  cleverness  of,  26. 

characteristics  of,  42. 

wages  of,  51. 

Cowell,  Mr.,  meets  Mrs.  A.  Tweedie,  17. 

Crabtree,  H.  H.,  421. 

Cruciform  chamber,  Mitla,  visited  by  Mrs. 

A.  Tweedie,  3S5-7. 
Cruciform  cross,  discovered  by  Professor 

Saville,  280. 
Cuadrilla,  179. 
Cuazitla,  church  turned  into  railway  station 

^''.  350- 
Cuba,  colonization  of  by  Spaniards,  166. 
Cuernavaca,  355. 

situation  of,  295. 

Cuitlahuac,  altar  built  by  people  of,  210. 

D. 

Dabaire,  Enrique,  Jefe  Politico  de  Tete- 

cala,  313. 
Dar  Calabazas,  i.e.,  conge,  306. 
"  Days  of  My  Youth,"  i. 
Deering,  Sir  Henry,  former  English  Min- 
ister in  Mexico,  154. 
gives  Mrs.   Alec  Tweedie  introduc- 
tions for  Mexico,  154. 


DegoUado,  Madame,  former  lady  in  waiting 

to  Empress  Carlotta,  27 1 -3. 
Del    Rio,     Senor    Pablo    Martinez,    great 

lawyer,  158. 
Devil's  Backbone,  276. 
Diaz,  General    Porfirio,   President  of   the 
Mexican      Republic,     65, 
116,   156,  346-7,   3S2. 

great  Dictator,  66,  123. 

ancestry  and  birthplace  of,  117,  143. 

decides  to  become  a  soldier,  118. 

enters  militarj^  career,  120. 

triumphant  entry  into   Mexico   City, 

121. 

proclaimed  President,  122. 

wonderful  work  done  by,  124. 

summer  residence  of,  126 

receives  Mrs.  Alec  Tweedie,  128. 

appearance  of,  129. 

interest  in  Transvaal  War  of,  130. 

splendid  memory  of,  1 31. 

deputation  received  at  Castle  Chapul- 

tepec  by,  132. 
Mrs.  Alec.  Tweedie's  impressions  of, 

ib. 

days  routine  of,  134. 

• illness  of,  137. 

probable  successor  to,  ib. 

absolute  power  of,  13S. 

law  and  order  instituted  by,  169. 

resolute  disapproval  of  bull-fights  by, 

187. 
European    telegrams   every    day   to, 

227. 

simplicity  of,  232. 

kindliness  of,  241. 

courtesy  of,  270. 

letter  of  introduction  given  by,  292. 

letters  written  on  Mrs.  A.  Tweedie's 

behalf  by,  296. 
revolts    against     President     Tejada, 

.  344- 

visits  Alar^on,  350. 

defeats  Cobos,  367. 

made  Governor  of  Oaxaca,  368. 

need  of  harbours  noticed  by,  425. 

Madame,"  Carmelita,"  popular  name 

for,  128. 

reception  of  Mrs.   A.   Tweedie 

by,  1 28. 
interprets  for,  Mrs.  A.  Tweedie, 

131- 

charm  of,  134. 

posada  given  by,  195. 

gives      present      to      Mrs.    A. 

Tweedie,  197. 

visited  by  Mrs.  A.Tweedie,  241. 

Diego,  Juan,  vision  of,  loi. 
Diligence,  description  of,  88. 

road  to  Santiago  taken  by,  87. 

Diplomatists,    necessity    for    picked  men 

as,  154-5. 
Dug-out  canoes,  412. 


464 


INDEX. 


Duran,  Fray  Diego,  date  of  subjugation  of 

iMitla  given  by,  392. 
Durango,  68,  87,  88,  91. 

bull-fights  in,  76. 

cathedral  of,  79. 

cockfight  at,  73. 

departure  of  Mrs.  A.  Tweedie  from, 

86. 

elevation  of,  98. 

famous  shrine  outside,  79-80. 

water-sellers  of,  80. 

E. 

Eagle   Pass,    Mrs.    A.    Tweedie  crosses 

Rio  Grand  at,  18. 
Edward  VI.,  first  prayer  book  of,  251. 
Eeler's,  Dr.,  work  on  jMitla,  385. 
Egrets,  409. 

Enchiladas,  Mexican  dish,  203. 
Engineer,  sad  fate  of  an,  91. 
England,  Mexicans  educated  in,  146. 
Englishmen,  list  of,  victims  of  Inquisition, 

174-5- 
Enriquez,  Captain  Juan,  293. 
Escalerillas,  Street  excavations  in,  210. 
Escandon,    Seiior  Guillermo  de  Landa  y, 

Governor  of  the  Federal  District, 

125. 

interprets  for  Mrs.  A.  Tweedie,  131. 

leader  of  society  in  Mexico,  156. 

shows   archives   of    Mexico    City    to 

Mrs.  A.  Tweedie,    169. 
Escandon,  Carlos  de  Landa  y,  421, 
Escobedo,  General,  defeats  Maximilian  at 

Queretaro,  269. 
"  Escaleras  Tweedie,"  295. 
Esperanza,  descent  from,  70,  407. 
Estado,  Senor  Gobernador  del  (Governor  of 
the  State).      See  Garrido. 


Fenecatl,  god  of  air,  210. 

Finland,  inhabitants  of,  Chinese  descent 

of,  163. 
Fisher,  Father,  273. 
Flores,  Luis,  Secretary  of  State,  297. 

Senorita,      accompanies      Mrs.      A. 

Tweedie,  308,  346. 
"  Flowers,  The  Five,"  name  of  village  in 

Mexico,  375. 
Forster,  Hon.  John,  of  Washington,   157. 
Frijoks,  bean  used  by  Mexican  natives,  63, 

204. 
Fuerstenberg,  Prince,  Austrian  envoy,  270. 
Furness,  Horace  Howard,  284. 
Fustic,  used  for  dye,  411. 


Gaban,  or  jorongo,  part  of    native  dress, 
108. 


Galveston,  description  of  terrible  storm  at, 

.3- 
velocity  of  wind  during  great  storm, 

6. 

state  of  town  after  storm,  7. 

cremation  of  dead  at,  8. 

•  plague  of  mosquitoes  in,  9. 

method  of  identifying  the  dead  at,  10. 

excellence      of       arrangements      for 

housing  homeless  at,  11. 

vital  importance  to  America  of,  12. 

visit  of  Mary  Barton  to,  13-4. 

black  coachman's  account  of  storm  at, 

14-5- 

20. 

Gambling,  essential  to  Mexicans,  104-5. 

Gaiien,  worker  for  wages,  342. 

Garrido,      Nicolas,     Deputy-Governor  of 

Oaxaca,  368,  370. 
Garron,  Senor  Albino  Lopez,  Treasurer  of 

the  State,  370. 
Gaynor,  Mr.  William,  293,  298. 
Gillow,  EulogioG., Archbishop  of  Oaxaca, 

362. 
Geranium,  253. 

Goats,  herds  of,  kept  on  ranches,  43-4. 
Gonzales,  General,  President  of  Mexico, 

124. 
Gorsuch,   Alajor  Robert,  engineer  of  first 

railway  in  Mexico,  98-9. 
Grass-coats,  worn  by  peasants,  97. 
Green,    Col.    George    M.,  important    part 
played  by,  264-5. 

enrols  volunteers,  266. 

saves  Juarez  from  capture,  268. 

Greville,    Mr.,  new    English   minister   to 

Mexico,  154. 
Grimwood,  Adolfo,  former  schoolfellow  of 
Mrs.    A.   Tweedie,  291,   293, 
297,   299,  350. 
Guadalajara,  264. 

cathedral  at,  contains  Murillo,  245. 

quaintness  of,  243. 

pottery  of,  244. 

water  arrangements  in,  247. 

Guadalupe,  Aztec  stronghold,  100. 

cathedral  at,  richness  of,  107. 

■ picture  of  the  Virgin  in,  103. 

sleeping    worshippers    outside, 

no,  115. 

— thank     offerings      and    votive 

offerings  in,  115. 

Chapel  on  the  Hill  (Capilla  del 

Cerrito),  stairway  to,  II2. 

Chapel  of  the  Well  at,  112. 

crowds  at  festival  of,  106. 

sacred  water  at,  113. 

famous    Lady  of,  celebration  of  ^  her 

feastday,  103- 1 14. 

feast  day  of  the  Lady  of,  wonderful 

attraction  to  Mexicans,  114. 

festivals  most  famous  in  Mexico,'ioo. 

pictures  on  walls  at,  114. 


INDEX. 


465 


Guadalupe,  railway  to,  98. 

shrine  of    the  Lady  of,  the  holiest  in 

Mexico,  115. 
stone  sails,    monument   on  staircase 

at,  113. 
Virgin  of.  Patron  Saint  of  Mexico, 

103. 

real  crown  made  for,  109. 

Guanajuato,  description  of,  256-7. 

mummies  in,  258. 

peculiarity  of  earth  in,  257. 

Guardo  de  Palatin,  Empress'  guard,  273. 
Guiaroo,  ancient  fortress  at,  built  of  adobe, 
396. 

• cruciform  cross  at,  396. 

description  of,  397. 

Upper,  start  for,  395. 

Guggenheim,     Mr.     William,     owner    of 

smelting  works  at  Monterey,  61. 
Gutierrez,  Salvador,  309. 
photographs  Mrs.  A.  Tweedie,  319. 

H. 

Hacienda,   Mexican,  information  about, 

29. 
necessity  for  water  in,  30. 

Mexican,  value  of  stock  on,  31. 

details  of  working,  338. 

Seiior  Amor's  description  and  manage- 
ment of,  338. 
Hall,  Mr.  Charles,  architect  of  Town  Hall 

at  Puebla,  355. 
Hall  of  Grecques,  The,  384. 

Kings,   The,  restored  by  Seiior 

D.  Leopoldo  Batres,  389. 

Moniliths,  The,  384. 

Hamilton,  Mrs.,  receives  Mrs.  A.  Tweedie 

at  frontier,  18. 
Hampson,     Harry,    of     the     Cuernavaca 

Railway,  298. 
Hansen,       Monsieur,      Russian      Charge 

d' Affaires,  154,  157. 
Harley,  Dr.,  memoirs  of,  241. 
Harper's  Magazine,  264. 
Hay,  Colonel  John,  Secretary  of  State  to 

United  States,  158. 
Hernandez,  Rafael,  Magistrate  of  Supreme 

Court,  370. 
Heyking,  Baron  von,  German  Minister  to 
Mexico,  155-6. 

Baroness,  von,  clever  artist,  155. 

"  Hojas  de  narango,"  orange   tea,  served 

instead  of  black  coffee,  306. 
Holmes,  William,  "Archnsological  Studies 
among      the    Ancient     Cities    of 
Mexico,"  3S2. 

on  Maya  race,  398. 

Hornets'  nests,  409. 

Horse,  Mexican,  small  value  of,  38. 

■ round-up,  Ty'i. 

Houston,  junction,  arrival  at,  20. 
Hudson,  Mr.   C.  R.,  249,  355. 


Hudson,  ]Mr.  Paul,  manager  of  "  Mexican 

Ilerald,"  227. 
Hiievos  Rancheros,  Mexican  dish,  203. 
Huerta,  Alexican  General,  269. 
Humbolt,  bust  of,  274. 

I. 

Iguana,  green  lizard,  419. 

Indians,  Mexican,  kindness  to  pets,  90. 

—  ancient  dress  of,  108. 

superstitions  of,  131,  364. 

Indio  Triste,  Mexican  god,  212. 
Inquisition,    introduced    into    Mexico  by 

Cortes,  172. 
Ixtaccihuatl,  snow  summit  of,  126,  291. 
Ixtenetztik,  plant  used  for  cure  of  pinto, 
336. 


Jarabe,  Mexican  dance,  160. 

Japan,  162. 

Java,  162. 

Jefe  Politico,  310. 

"Jerked,"  or  sun-dried  beef,  43;  similar 

to  biltong,  ib. 
Jerome,  General,  V.C,  father  of  English 
Consul,  154. 

Mr.      Lucien,     English    Consul     in 

Mexico,   153-4. 

■  supplies  list  of  English  victims 

of  Inquisition,  175. 
Julvecourt,  Comte  de,  153. 
"  Jockey  Club,"  beautiful  building  of,  in 
>IexicoCity,  236. 

ball  given  by,  239. 

Judas  burnt  by,  402. 

John,  first   Englishman   reconciled  to  the 

Church,  173. 
Johnson,    Mr.   Lorenzo,   general  manager 
of  the  International  Railway,  65, 
66,  86,  95. 

Mr.    Rankin,  chief  engineer  of  new 

line,  91. 
Juarez,  Benito,  former  President  of  Mexico 
118. 

overthrows  Roman  Catholic  sway  in 

Mexico,  1 18-9. 

death  of,  120. 

elected  President,  120. 

264,  266. 

Juaves,  tribe  of  Mexican  Indians,  171. 
Judas,  effigies  of,   burnt  in    Mexico  City, 
402. 

K. 

Kalevala,  epic  poem  of  Finland,  163. 
Khevenhueller,    Prince,    Austrian    envoy, 

270. 
King,  Mrs.,  receives  Mrs.  A.  Tweedie  at 
frontier,  18. 


466 


INDEX. 


Kingsborough,    Lord,    book    on    Mexico, 

i66,  3S5,  391. 
Kitchener's     preference     for     unmarried 
soldiers,  130. 

L. 

"  La  Golondrina,"  national  hymn,  81. 
Leah,  Hon.  Manuel    Fernandez,  minister 

of  Fomento,  142. 
Le  Mare,  Mr.,  meets  Mrs.  A.  Tweedie,  17. 
Le   Plongeon,  Dr.  Augustus,  theory  about 

Mexico,  166. 
Leon,  264. 

Lerdo,  Vice-President  of  Mexico,  122. 
Ley  fuga,  peculiar  law  in  Mexico,  346. 
Limantour,  Hon.  Tos6, Minister  of  Finance, 
tmdget,    140 ;    cleverness  of, 
140-2. 

possible  successor  to  Diaz,  137. 

157,  198. 

Jules  M.,  421. 

Lincoln,   President,  news  of  assassination 

of,  266. 
Lourdes,    legend    of,    similar    to    that   of 

Guadalupe,  100,  115. 
wall  pictures  at,  114. 

M. 

Machete,  sword  worn  in  Mexico,  252. 
Maclaren,  Mr.  Charles,  M.P.,  124. 
McKinley,  Mrs.  A.  Tweedie  witnesses  re- 
election of,  65. 
Magne,  Mr.  Napoleon,  153. 
Magro,  Francesco,  Magistrate  of  Supreme 
Court,  370. 

Senor  Lie,   Chief   Justice  of    State, 

receives  Mrs.  A.  Tweedie,  359. 
Malinche,  water  sprite,  legend  of,  126. 
Malintzi,  saviour  of  Mexican  people,  ICX). 
Manada,  or  bunch  of  horses,  38. 
Manson,   Dr.   Patrick,  the  great  authority 

on  tropical  diseases,  336. 
Marina,  Mexican  girl,  mistress  of  Cortez, 

167. 
Mariscal,  Hon.Ignacio,Minister  of  Foreign 
Relations,  137,  142,  157. 

appointed  Deputy-President,  138. 

Marques,  Mexican  General,  267. 

Matador,  179. 

Maudsley,    ^Ir.    Alfred,    author    of    ''A 

Glimpse  of  Guatemala,"  159. 
Maximilian,  Emperor  of  Mexico,  crowned 
Emperor,  266. 

defeated   at   Queretaro    by    General 

Escobedo,  269. 
execution  of,    121,  270;  history   of, 

263. 
persuaded  to  remain  in  Mexico,  267. 

relics  of,  274. 

surrenders  to  General  Corona,  270. 

Mazatlan,  port  of,  86. 


Medaillac,         S.andelier,         "  Prehistoric 

America,"  382. 
Mejia,  General,  267,  270. 
Mellor,  JNIrs.,  421. 
Mena,   General    Francisco,     Minister     of 

Communications,  142,  157,  421. 
Mendez,  Mexican  General,  267. 
Merrill's,  Mr.,  round-up  for  butcher  at,  29. 
Metatc,  stone  trough,  name  for,  63. 
Mesquitc,  wood,  23. 
"Mexican  Herald,"  227. 
Mexican  houses,  peculiar  style  of,  127-8. 

Indians,  terrible  thieves,  107,  223. 

driver's  cleverness  of,  249. 

• universal  food  of,  171. 

various  tribes  of,  171. 

Ladies,    beauty      of,    146 ;     French, 

favourite  language  of,  ib. 

nature,  full  of  superstition,  130. 

railways,  routes  of,  290. 

Mexicans,  England  popular  with,  146. 

lavish  hospitality  of,  150-1. 

Latin  temperament  strong  in,  150. 

their  love  of  seclusion,  247. 

Mexico,    American    Ambassador    to,    see 

Clayton. 

Belgian  Minister  to,  see  Moncheur. 

English  Minister   to,  see  Deering  & 

Greville. 
German  Minister  to,  see  Heyking. 

President  of,  see  Diaz. 

Deputy-President  of,  see  Mariscal. 

Minister  of  War  in,  see  Reyls. 

Russian      Charge      d'Affaires,      see 

Hansen. 

leader  of  society  in,  see  Escandon. 

Mrs.  Alec  Tweedie's  reason  forth- 
coming, I  ;  firearms  carried  in,  i, 
21  ;  absence  of  twilight,  23  ;  value 
of  live  stock,  exports  from,  32  ; 
most  saleable  breed  of  horse  in,  40  ; 
natives  of,  50 ;  cowboys  of,  ib ; 
peon  system  in,  51  ;  private  railway 
coaches  of,  58  ;  badness  of  hotels, 
59  ;  infant  mortality  in,  64  ;  reasons 
for  scarcity  of  labour,  ih  ;  Chinese 
and  Japanese  labour  imported,  65  ; 
army  of,  where  recruited,  67  ; 
Indians  of,  69  ;  blindness  common 
in,  ib  ;  railways,  average  speed  of, 
70  ;  great  want  of  water  in,  71  ; 
cock-fights,  72  ;  universal  custom 
of,  76  ;  punishment  for  crimes  in, 
77  ;  passion  for  gambling  in,  79  ; 
love  making  in,  81-2  ;  condition  of 
women  in,  82-3  ;  immorality  in 
villages  of,  83  ;  mines  of,  worked 
chiefly  by  Americans,  84  ;  capi- 
talists of,  ib  ;  land  of  Montezuma, 
85  ;  flocks  of  birds  in,  89  ;  ball, 
favourite  game  of,  94  ;  mountain 
passes  of,  98  ;  death-rate  among 
children  in,  109  ;  Church  supreme 


INDEX. 


467 


'^\^yi\.zo—coiitimted. 

in,  119  ;  terrible  condition  of,  121  ; 
famous  for  skyscapes,  127  ;  accus- 
tomed to  military  rule,  138  ;  budget 
of,  140-2  ;  stamp,  revenue  of,  141  ; 
treasury  surplus  in,  142  ;  ministers 
of,  ib  ;  government  of,  143  ;  system 
of  taxation  in,  143  ;  Chambers  of 
Deputies  and  Congress  of,  ib  ;  won- 
derful courtesy  in,  147-S  ;  happy 
family  life  of,  148-9 ;  quaint 
customs  in,  152;  hospitality  of 
Diplomatic  Corps  in,  153;  antiquity 
of,  161  ;  pyramids  in,  ib  ;  earliest 
people  of,  162  ;  derivation  of  name, 
165  ;  proportion  of  Indians  in 
population  of,  171  ;  Inquisition 
introduced  into,  172;  Auto-da-Fe 
in,  173-5  ;  Cathedral  of,  173  ;  Jews 
and  Moors  banished  from,  174  ; 
sport  in,  187  ;  Christmas  festivities 
in,  189  ;  courtesy  shown  to  Presi- 
dent of,  196  ;  favourite  dance  in, 
ib  ;  importance  of  godparents  in, 
199-200  ;  beggars  licensed  in,  201  ; 
picture  writing  in,  206  ;  primitive 
methods  in,  207-S  ;  copal  used  as 
incense,  210;  Indio  Triste,  god  of, 
212 ;  eagle  representative  of, 
212  ;  death  customs  and  manners 
in,  213-19  ;  importance  of  Feast  of 
All  Souls,  215-6 ;  variety  of 
climate  in,  220  ;  domestics  of,  ib  ; 
religion  of,  221  ;  resemblance  to 
the  East,  ib ;  postal  system  in, 
224  ;  education  in,  226  ;  libraries 
in,  227  ;  possibilites  of,  229  ;  good 
employment  for  Europeans  in, 
229-30  ;  chief  industries  of,  230  ; 
country  houses  in,  231  ;  new  year, 
special  festival  of,  232  ;  gambling, 
the  curse  of,  236-7  ;  govern- 
ment lottery  in,  237-9 ;  masons' 
custom  in,  245-6;  turkey  indigenous 
to,  237  ;  northern  coalfields  in,  ib  ; 
diligence  in,  249  ;  active  volcano 
in,  250  ;  ox  teams  used  in,  252  ; 
superstition  concerning  wood- 
pecker in,  254  ;  Diaz  organises 
Rurales  for,  261  ;  French  ordered 
to  evacuate,  266  ;  division  of 
climate  in,  275  ;  customs  at  ban- 
quets, 299-300 ;  country  policemen 
of,  324 ;  leprosy  in,  336  ;  rice, 
staple  food  of,  349  ;  Domingo 
churches  finest  in,  355  ;  fertility  of 
soil,  358;  land  of  dust,  371  ;  an- 
tiquity of  ruins  in,  ib  ;  natural  ice 
of,  372 ;  business-like  habits  of 
women  in,  373  ;  devil  dances  of, 
375  ;  coffee  and  maize  exported 
from,  436  ;  cocoa  bean  indigenous 
to,    //) ;    sugar    great    product    of. 


437  ;  cotton  in,  ib  ;  tobacco  pro- 
duced in,  441  ;  labour,  great 
difficulty  in,  441. 

Mexico,  Birds  of  :  — 

birds  of  paradise,  381. 

duck,  253. 

,,  Muscovy,  253,  279. 

,,  wood,  253. 

egrets,  253,  279. 

hawks,  279. 

humming-birds,  253. 

mocking-birds,  380-1. 

pelicans,  253. 

• pheasants,  253. 

parrots,  253,  40S,  411. 

quails,  253. 

swans,  253- 

turkeys,  253. 

vultures,  30,  32. 

Beasts  of  : — 

alligators,  253. 

antelopes,  253. 

• badgers,  253. 

boyotes,  253. 

crocodiles,  253. 

dabali,  253. 

deer,  253. 

■ ibex,  253. 

lions,  253. 

manatees,  253. 

monkeys,  253,  277. 

mountain  sheep,  253. 

opossums,  253. 

panthers,  253,  279. 

squirrels,  253. 

tapirs,  253. 

tigers,  253. 

timber  wolves,  253. 

City,  59,  95,  105,  167. 

Mrs.  A.  Tweedie  enters,  97. 

cold  in  winter,  104. 

foundation  of,  126. 

cabs  in,  1 45 -6. 

society  in,  customs  of,  144-5-6. 

description  of  theatre  in,  152. 

weather  in,  1 58. 

snow  in,  159, 

Women's  club  in,  gives  recep- 
tion for  Mrs.  A.  Tweedie,  160. 

founded  by  Aztecs,  164. 

entered  by  Cortes,  16S. 

first  council  in,  ib. 

Christmas  fair  in,  192-3. 

elevation  of,  201. 

cruelty  to  animals  in,  205. 

death-rate  in,  20S. 

Aztec   altar   seen    by    Mrs.    A. 

Tweedie,  209-10. 

excavations  in,  210. 

jade  beads  found,  ib. 

wall  of  serpents,  part  of  ex- 
humed in,  211. 

idols  discovered  in,  ib. 


468 


INDEX. 


ISIexico  City,  street  cries  of,  219. 

police  regulations  in,  222. 

doctor's   stores   and    cures    for 

disease  in,  221-2. 

pawnshops  in,  223-4. 

■ churches  for  burglars  in,  225. 

Jockey  Club  in,  236. 

Plants  of  :— 

aquacate,  253. 

bamboos,  277- 

— bananas,  277. 

castor  oil  vines,  271. 

chico  zapote,  253. 

• granadita,  253. 

guamuchil,  253. 

lima  dulce,  253. 

■ • mango,  253. 

melon  zapote,  253. 

mimosa,  27S. 

nopal,  253. 

pineapples,  427. 

pitahay,   253. 

- — ■ prickly  pear,   24. 

■ red  pepper  plants,  278. 

sugar  cane,  277. 

Miacatlan,  Senor  Romualdo  Pasquel  re- 
ceives Mrs.  A.  Tweedie  at, 
320. 

Micos,  or  monkeys,  277. 
Miramon,  General,  264. 

execution  of,  270. 

Mirmon,  Mexican  General,  267. 

Mitla,  Antiquity  of  names  of,  381. 

arrival  of  Mrs.  A.  Tweedie  at,  379. 

built  by  the  Nahuas,  384. 

comparison  between  Xochicalco  and, 

389- 

geometrical  designs  at,  383. 

impressions  of,  383,  379. 

Indian  family  in,   393. 

ruins  similar  to  those  of  Yucatan,  384. 

Mayas  Zapotec  ruins  visited  by  Mrs. 

A.  Tweedie,  354. 

work  of  Zapotecs,  390. 

valley,  small  race  in,  374. 

village  of,  392. 

Mixtecs,  tribe  of  Mexican  Indians,  171. 
Miztecas  tribe,  one  of  the  finest  peoples  of 

Mexico,  117. 
Mole,  Mexican  dish,  157. 
Molina,  General,  one   of  President    Diaz' 

friends,  344. 
shot  by  order  of  Colonel  Ugalde, 

345- 
Momfrie,  Peter,  victim  of  Inquisition   in 

^Mexico,   174. 
Moncheur,    Earon,    Belgian    minister    in 

Mexico,  153,  157. 
Monkeys,  277,  408. 
Monte  Alban,  tumuli  at,  376. 
Monterey,  chief  Ijusiness  town  in  Mexico, 
description  of,  60  ;  population 
of,  61 


Monterey,  likeness  to  Chicago,  61. 

native  huts  in,  62. 

roads  paved  with  brick,  60. 

Montezuma  or  Moctheuzoma,  Emperor  of 

Mexico,  great  Mexican  ruler, 

98,  167,  297,  392. 

land,  94  ;    priests  not  allowed  to  wear 

clerical  robes  in,  ib. 

becomes  feudatory  of  Spain,  168. 

Montufar,  Alonzo  de,  second   Archbishop 

of  Mexico,  173. 
Moran,  Mexican  General,  267. 
Morcom,  Mr.  W.,  lends  Mrs.  A.  Tweedie 

his  private  car,  355. 
Morelos,  stronghold   belonging    to    Diaz, 

344- 
Morocco,  plague  of  locusts,  9. 

■ flights  of  birds  and  locusts  in,  89. 

MSS.  old,  composition  of,   391. 

Mticrtos,  216. 

Mules,  sagacity  of,  24. 

N. 

Nagtiaks,  192. 

Nansen,  Dr.,  422. 

successful  North  Pole  exploration  of. 

Napoleon  III.  ceases  to  supportMaximilian, 
266. 

identified  by  Prince  Charles  Pf)nia- 

towski,  154. 

invades  Mexico,  120. 

refuses  aid  to  Carlotta,  267-8. 

Nestizo  (performers  of  witch-craft),  364. 
New  Orleans,  centre  of  carnival  festivities 

at,  401. 
New  York,  drug  stores  in,  53. 
Niagara,  2. 
Nicaragua  Canal,  427. 
Nickerson,  Mr.,  vice-chairman  of  Mexico 

Central  Railway,  244. 
"Norther,"   Mrs.   A.  Tweedie's  first  ex- 
periences of,  54,  57- 
Novia  (lady  love),  81. 

o. 

Oaxaca,  70. 

Diaz  born  at,  117,  366. 

bronze  figures  found  in,  161,  354-5' 

Mrs.  A.  Tweedie's  reception  at,  361. 

Archbishop  of,  362. 

• his  Capa  Magna,  363,  424. 

Tapotec  tombs  around,  365. 

mines  in  State  of,  366. 

skeleton  weddings  formerly  common 

at  374- 
State, languages  spoken  in,  370;  names 

in,  of  Aztec  origin,  375. 
Oberammergau,   comparison  between   and 

Guadalupe,  115. 

Passion  play  at,  106. 


INDEX. 


469 


Obregon,  Don  Luis,  author  of  "  Sketches 
of  Old  Mexico/'  173. 

O'Brian,  Mr.,  takes  Mrs.  Tweedie  to 
Mexican  restaurant,  202. 

Obsidian  blades,  397. 

Oliveros,  Senor  Alejandro,  manager  of 
S.  Gabriel  hacienda,  344. 

Senor  Ramon,  293.  298. 

acts    as  interpreter  to  Mrs.  A. 

Tweedie,  344. 
gives  Mrs.  A.  Tweedie  Mexican 

dinner,  306. 
Orizaba,  descent  to,  from   Esperanza,  70. 

Maximilian      met     at,    by    Marshal 

Bazaine,  267. 

volcano  of,  408. 

Otomi,  tribe  of  Mexican  Indians,  171. 


PAL.A.CIOS,  Miguel,  421. 

Palm  cactus,  used  by  native  Mexicans,  97. 

Palms,  253. 

Panama   Railway,   monopoly   of   carrying 

trade,  428. 
Panuco  River,  2S4. 
Pascon,  70. 

Pastor,  or  goat-herd,  44. 
Payne's  History  of  the  New  World,  3S2. 
Pearson,  Harold,  421. 

Sir  Weetman,  411. 

gives   Mrs.   A.   Tweedie    intro- 
ductions, 124-5. 

harbour  at  Vera  Cruz  built  by, 

425. 

ports  to  be  built  by,  426. 

Pearson  and  Son  become  partners  with 
Mexican  Government 
in  Isthmus  of  Tehuan- 
tepec  railway,  426. 

terms    of     agreement    between 

Mexican     Government     and, 
426-7. 
Pearson,  Lady,  kindness  of,  405. 
Peons,  system  of,  51,  92-3. 

pay  rent  in  kind,  342. 

Pescado  bianco,  253. 
Fetate,  grassmats,  416. 
Philadelphia,  2. 

engine  made  in,  98. 

Philbrick,     Arthur    J.,     Traffic     Manager 
Navigation  Department  Vera 
Cruz  Railway,  410. 
Philippines,  162. 
Picardo, Father  Joseph, list  of  names  copied 

by,  173. 
Puadorcs,  horsemen  at  bull-fight,  179. 
Pinto,  or  Saltsayaiiolitzth,  disease  similar 

to  ringworm,  336. 
Poniatowski,  Prince  Charles,  153. 

identifies   Napoleon    III., 

154. 

Princess  Charles,  153. 


Pope  Leo  XIII.,  decrees  from,  regarding 
ceremonial  to  be  observed  at  New 
Century,  234-5. 

Popocatepetl,  volcano  of,  126. 

291. 

Porfirio  Diaz,  warm  reception  of  JNIrs.  A. 
Tweedie  at,  18. 

Posada,  description  of,  189,  192. 

Madame     Diaz      invites      Mrs.      A. 

Tweedie  to,  189. 
Post    Columbrian     Nahuatl     Book,     first 

mention  of  Mitla,  392. 
Potosi,  70. 

Prescott's  "  History  of  Mexico,"  162. 
Puebla,  70. 

captured  by  Diaz,  121. 

cathedral  at,  355. 

description  of,  356. 

Puente  de  Dios  (God's  bridge),  283. 
Puente  de  Ixtla,  347. 
Pulque,  native  drink,  63,  105. 

one  of  the  curses  of  Mexico,  105. 

quantity  drunk  in  Mexico  City,  105. 

Q. 

Quebec,  2. 

Queen  Victoria,  news  of  death  of,  333. 

Queretaro,  famous  church  at,  259. 

^Maximilian  shot  at,  258. 

defeated  at,  269. 

• opals  at,  25S. 

Rurales  at,  260. 

Quetzalcoatl,  Mexican  god,  211. 

R. 

Railway  line  now  made,  87. 

Mexican,  Cuernavaca  and  Pacific, 290. 

Central,  70,  290. 

International,  186,  290. 

Isthmus,  290. 

National,  70. 

Southern,  290. 

popular  excitement  over  first,  99. 

Ramirez,  Florentino,  spokesman  for  Aztec 

villagers,  315. 
Ranche,  or  hacienda,  18. 

life  on  a  Mexican,  22-3. 

no  future  in,  48. 

difficult  problem,  49. 

Rcboso,  or  head-shawl,  95. 

or  shawl  worn  by  Mexican  Indians, 

104. 
Reyes,  General  Bernardo,  good  organiser, 

137-   .   . 
Minister   of  War,   both    states- 
man and  soldier,  139,  157. 
Riba,  Seiior  Cervantes  de,  195. 
Ribley,    John,    victim    of    Inquisition   in 

Mexico,  174. 
Rickards,  Constantine,  359. 

excavations  done  by,  3S9. 


470 


INDEX. 


Rickards,  Mr.,  370. 

Rio  Grande,  crossed  by  Mrs.  A.  Tvveedie, 

iS. 
Rivers  in  the  tropics,  401-422. 
Robelo,   Licenciado    Cecilio,    author     of 

several  works  on  Indians,  307. 
Roberts,  Lord,  Diaz  on,  130. 
Robinson,  Mr.  A.  A.,  chairman  of  Mexican 

Central  Railway,  244. 
Robles,  Senor, manager  of  Cortes'  hacienda, 

305. 
Rockies,  railway  over,  86. 
Rome,  Columbarium  at,  258. 
comparison  between,  and  Guadalupe, 

Rurales,   institution  and  origin  of,  260-1, 
303,  30S,  322,  323,  33S,  34S. 

good  qualities  ot,  326-7. 

Ruiz,    Senor    Andres,    receives    Mrs.    A. 
Tweedie,  376. 


Sabin'AS,  17  ;  arrival  of  Mrs.  A.  Tweedie 
at,  18. 

Mr.  Cloete's  ranche  near,  40. 

"Sabinas,"      Mr.      Lorenzo     Johnson's 

private  car,  86. 
Sahagun,  210. 

Sainte  Beuve,  his  idea  of  Experience,  14. 
"  S.  James  of  the  Drunkards,"  name  of 

Mexican  village,  375. 
S.  Philip  Neri,  oration  of,  173. 
Salamanca,  battle  of,  264. 
Salina  Cruz,  425,  431. 

harbour  to  be  built  at,  426. 

seaport  of,  434. 

size  of  harbour,  435. 

water  supply  at,  432. 

San  Antonio,  20. 

Mrs.  A.  Tweedie  at,  14. 

pottery  made  by  Indians  of,  296. 

prehistoric  rock  at,  297. 

San  Benito,  garb  of  victims  of  the  Inqui- 
sition, 172-3,  174. 
San    Corralejo,    river   under    grottoes    of 

Cacahuamilpa,  328. 
Sandwich  Islands,  162. 
San  Felizo,  terrible  immorality  of,  84. 
S.  Gabriel,  hacienda  of  Amor  family,  337. 
San  Jacinto,  Maximilian  defeated  at,  268. 
San  Jeromino,  river  coming  out  beneath 
cave  of  Cacahuamilpa,  328 
San  Juan,  navigable  river,  410,  419,  421. 
San  Lorenzo,  captured  by  Diaz,  121. 
San  Luis,  ranche  at,  51,  70. 
San  Nicolas,  410. 
San  Vicente,   hacienda,  visit  of   Mrs.    A. 

Tweedie,  307. 
Santa  Anna,  dictator  of  Mexico,  120. 
Santiago,  86,  91,  98. 

adobe  huts  in,  90. 

arrival  of  Mrs.  A.  Tweedie  at,  89. 


Santiago,  "ball  wall  "  in,  94. 

excitement  over  first  railway  at,  99. 

similarity  to  Jerusalem,  93. 

Sapote  grande,  435. 
"Sarapes,"  or  blankets,  IIO. 
Sarmina,  Senor  Ignacio,  293,  297. 
Saville,    Professor    Marshall,    from    New 

York  ^Museum,  380,  395. 

excavations  by,  3S4. 

funeral  urns  found  by,  388  ;  mortuary 

customs  of  Zapotecs,  ib. 
Sayer,  G. ,  421. 
Schulze,  Augustin,  421. 
Seward,  W.  H.,  pressure  put  upon  French 

by,  266. 
Siesta,  72. 

Simonds,  Mr.  L.  C,  227. 
Soledad,  name  of  Mr.  Merrill's  hacienda, 

29. 
Sologuren,  Dr.  Fernando,  great  archaeolo- 
gist, 364- 

private   museum   belonging  to, 

ih. 
jade  ornaments  found  by,  365. 

— : —  370, 380. 

Sorosis,     luncheon    of,    at    the    Waldorf 

Astoria,  160. 
Sosa,  Ignacio,  Robles  y,  297. 
Spain,  position  of,  under  Ferdinand  and 

Isabella,  166. 
Starr,  Professor  Frederick  of  Chicago,  169. 
author    of     "  Indians    of    Southern 

Mexico,"  170. 
gives  collection  of  Mucrtos  to  Folk 

Lore  Society  of  London,  216. 
Stanhope,  Mr.,  157. 
Stevenson,    Robert    Louis,  "Apology   for 

Idlers,"  442. 
Stoneyhurst,  Mexicans  educated  at,  146. 
Sugar-cane,  sucking,  Indian  habit,  97. 

T. 

Tabasco,  167. 

Tamales,  food  of  Indians,  171,  400. 

Tampico,  3,  12,  275, 

caves  near,  28 1. 

division  of  Great  Central  Railway,  70. 

harbour  of,  283. 

pelicans  at,  284. 

port  at,  229. 

tarpon  in  harbour  of,  283. 

rising  place,  284. 

Tanda,  Mexican  for  act,  152. 
Tehuantepec,  Isthmus  of,  229. 

position  of,  231. 

finest  Indians  exist  in,  374. 

Sir  Weetman  Pearson  starts  for,  406. 

rivers  in  the,  411. 

Cortds  realises  importance  of,  423. 

agriculture,  wealth  of  the,  424. 

Humbolt's  "  Bridge  of  the  World' 

Commerce,"  ib. 


INDEX. 


4/1 


Tehuantepec,  railway  across,  425. 

railway  rates  of,  428. 

advantages  of,  42S-9, 

soil  of,  433  ;  women's  rights,  ib. 

beauty  of  women  in,  434. 

home  of  maize,  435. 

humming-birds  in,  436. 

rubber  forests,  436. 

people  of  Spanish  descent  in,  441. 

practically  virgin  country,  442. 

Tejada,  Sebastian  Lerdo,  former  President 

of  Mexico,  344. 
Temilpa,  hacienda  belonging  to  Alarcon, 

347- 

famous  for  rice,  349. 

Temple,  Mr.  Agustin,  249. 
Tenochtitlan,    former    name    of    Mexico 

City,  126. 
Teoymique,  the  goddess  of  death,  210. 
Tepeyacac,  hill  of,  now  called  Guadalupe, 

lOI. 

Terrapins,  or  turtles,  40S,  412,  413. 
Texas,  12,  14. 

Tezicat,  name  of  Mexican  god.  172. 
Tiei-ra  calientc,  or  tropical  climate,  275. 
Tilma,  or  blanket  worn  by  Indians,  103. 

picture  of  the  Blessed  Virgin  on,  ib. 

crown  given   by  Mexican   ladies  for, 

109. 

mystery  about  picture  on,  no. 

Tlaxala,  Bishop  of,  174. 

Tlaxcalans,  tribe  of  Mexican  Indians,  171. 

Tlacolula,  Indian  village,  377. 

beautiful  church  at,  ib. 

Tlalcotalpam,  411. 
Tobacco,  produce  of,  441. 
Tolpetlac,  home  of  Juan  Diego,  loi. 
Toltecs,  law  of,  161. 

earliest  people  of  Mexico,  162. 

language  and  customs  of,  162-3. 

similarity  between,   and   Finlanders, 

163. 

371- 

work  of,  385. 

Tomellin,  358. 

canon  de,  3S9. 

Toomer,   J.  Pletcher,  General  Manager  of 
the  Vera  Cruz  Railway,  410. 

"  Torero,"  umpire  of  bull-fight,  178. 

Torreon,  reached  by  Mrs.  A.  Tweedie,  68. 

houses  in,  69. 

Mrs.  A.  Tweedie  returns  to,   95,  97. 

Tortilla,    food    of    Mexican  Indians,    63, 
106,  171. 

Tule,  big  tree  of,  376. 

Tweedie,    Mrs.  A.,   author    of    "  Days  of 
my  Vouth,"  i. 

■ reasons  for  choosing  ^lexico,  ib. 

■ route  to  Mexico,  2. 

sees  havoc  made  by  great  storm 

at  Galveston,  3,  13. 

at  San  Antonio,  14. 

■ reception  of,  16,  17. 


Tweedie,  Mrs.  A.,  crosses  Rio  Grande,  at 
Eagle  Pass,  18. 

wolves  alarm,  21. 

starts  for  cattle  "round-up,"  23. 

advocates       women's         riding 

astride,  44. 

practised  same  in  Iceland,  44  ; 

in  Moroco,  45. 

reasons     for    preferring    riding 

astride  to  side,  45-6. 

kit  to  be  worn,  46. 

skirt,  description    of,   worn    by, 

47-8. 

witnesses  McKinley's  re-elec- 
tion, 65. 

views  sham  fight,  67. 

reaches  Torreon,  68. 

witnesses  cock  fight  in  Durango, 

73-4- 

first  passenger  to  Santiago,  86. 

arrives  at  Chinacattes  terminus, 

rock  formations    near  Santiago 

observed  by,  90. 

narrow  escape  of,  92-3. 

return  to  Torreon,  95. 

anxiety    concerning    telegrams, 

95-6. 

good-bye  to   Mr.    Johnson  and 

the  Sabinas,  96. 

luggage  stolen,  97. 

introductions  given  her  by  Sir 

W.  Pearson,  125. 

taken  to  see  President  by  Senor 

de  Landa  y  Escandon,  125. 

received      by     President      and 

Madame  Diaz,  1 28. 

impressions  of  President,  132. 

visits  theatre,  152. 

• receives    introduction  from    Sir 

Henry  Deering,  154. 

reception  given  for,  liy  women's 

club  in  Mexico,  160. 

archives  of    Mexico  City  shewn 

to,  169. 

attends  bull-fight,  176. 

invited      to      Madame       Diaz' 

posada,   1S9. 

receives  present   from  Madame 

Diaz,  197. 

visits  Mexican  restaurant,  202-5. 

wonderful  Aztec  altar  in  Mexico 

City  seen  by,  209-10. 

• farewell  to  Madame  Diaz,  241. 

visits  Chapala  Lake,  24S. 

rides  on  an  engine,  284-9. 

arrival  at  Cuernavaca,  291. 

received  by  Col.  Alar9on,  292. 

reception  at  San  Antonio,  295. 

concert   given    in    honour    of, 

300-2. 

Cortes's  hacienda     visited    by, 

302. 


472 


INDEX. 


Tweedie,     Mrs.     A.,    custom    of     riding 

astride,  303-305. 
has  Mexicandinner  at  Olivero's, 

306. 

at  San  Vicente  hacienda,  307. 

welcome  at  Alpuyeca,  309. 

welcomed  at  Xochicalco  ruins 

by  Aztec  villagers,  313. 
photographed  by  Senor  Gutier- 
rez, 319. 
received  at  Miacatlan  by  Senor 

Romualdo  Pasquel,  320. 
visits  grottoes  of  Cacahuimilpa, 

326. 
news  of  Queen  Victoria's  death 

received  by,  333. 

slightly  wounded,  34S. 

leaves  Temilpa,  350. 

visits  Mitla  ruins  on  her  way, 

354- 
Mr.  W.  Morcom   lends  private 

car  to,  355. 
received   by   Chief    Justice    of 

State,  359. 

reception  at  Oaxaca,  561. 

dinner  given   in  honour  of,   at 

Oaxaca,  368-9. 

received  by  Senor  Andres  Ruiz 

.  376. 
impressions  of  ruins  of  Mitla 

383,   392. 

illness  of,  402-5. 

first   sight  of    primeval    forest 

418-9. 
meets  Sir  W.    Pearson  at  Coat 

yacoalcos,  421. 
second        experience       of        £ 

"  norther,"  421. 
stays  at  tobacco  hacienda,  438 

440. 
travels  with  Sir  Weetman  Pear 

son,  430. 

u. 

Ugalde,  Col.,  344  ;  orders  execution  of 
General  Molena,  345. 

United  States,  date  of  declaration  of  In- 
dependence by,  122. 

■ Minister   of,    in    Mexico  City. 

See  Clayton. 

protest  against  French  occupa- 
tion of  Mexico,  120. 

ultimatum  to  France  to  evac- 
uate Mexico,  266. 

Urbino,  Dr.  Manuel,  213. 


V. 

Valdivieso,     Dr.    Aurelio,    Director    of 

Institute,  370. 
Valencia,  Father  Martin  de,  description  of 

ruins,  392. 
Vera  Cruz,  98. 

harbour  at,  229. 

railway  line  to,  first  opened  in 

Mexico,  406,  409. 

Cortes  lands  at,  423. 

Vetancourt,  Fray  Augustin  de,  account  of 

apparition  of  \'irgin,  101-3. 
Venice,  comparison  between  and  Guada- 
lupe,   115. 
Vidaury,  Liberal  general,  265. 
Villa,  Senor  Yesus  Galendo  y,  213. 

w. 

Walker,  Col.  Aldace,  death  of,  65. 
Wall  of  Serpents  (coatepantli)  exhumed, 

211. 
Washington,  2. 
Wolves,  21,  30. 
Wolves  attack  cattle,  32. 


Xehecatl,  god  of  the  air,  211. 
Xochicalco,    Aztec    greeting   to    Mrs.    A. 
Tweedie,  313. 

celebrated  Aztec  ruins,  316-19. 

description  of  ruins,  317, 

fortress  of,  312. 

human  figures  at,  383. 

comparison  between  and  Mitla,  3S9. 

ruins,  work  of  Aztecs,  390. 


Yellow  fever,  433. 
Yucca  root,  starch  made  from,  410. 
Yucatan,  Mayas  inhabitants  of,  39S. 
ruins  similar  to  Mitla,  3S4. 


Zacatecas,  high  grades  at,  70. 

height  of,  275. 

Zapotecs,  former  occupiers  of  Mexico,  161. 

tribe  of  Mexican  Indians,   171,  371, 

377,  381. 
Zapotec  tribe,  polygamy  practised  amongs 
392. 

members  of,  41 8. 

Zumarraga,  Don  Juan,  Bishop,  loi. 


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